03-10-09, Richard Dickinson’s Presentation to the Glendale City Council Regarding the City Budget

Good evening.

My name is Richard Dickinson.

I have lived in this city for twenty-five years.

Before retiring, I worked as a chief analyst for the city of Los Angeles.

I was responsible for analyzing and administering the overall city budget, and advising the mayor and city council on a variety of budget, financial and policy matters.

Among my more interesting assignments, was managing the contracts for city services provided to the 1984 Olympics, working on charter reform, and managing the team of analysts who worked on secession and the proposed breakup of Los Angeles.

I am currently president of my homeowners association, but I am not speaking to you in that capacity today.

WHY I AM HERE

I am here today because I do not like the direction Glendale is going in. Specifically, there is a disconnect between the wages of Glendale employees and those who are paying the taxes.

I do not believe your current budget, revenue and gold-plated wage structures are sustainable for either the taxpayers or the city ---- particularly in today’s economic climate.

Today’s Los Angeles Times talks about cities bracing for losses in property taxes. The full effect of a property tax revenue loss has not yet been seen.

Also today the LAUSD just announced pink slips for up to 9000 employees.

I know many people who are out of work; I know others who are seeing wages and benefits cut.

My neighbors are concerned like I am about the utility rates in Glendale which are already sky high, and will go higher if you do not take actions soon.

Another dark cloud that is looming is your pension obligation.

CalPERS, like most other pension systems, has been hit with investment losses. There’s no free lunch, and you will eventually get hit with higher contribution rates.

I do not believe your direct labor costs are sustainable, nor are your pension and retirement costs. They are generally much higher than other cities and the county of L.A.

I examined federal Bureau Of Labor Statistics wage data for the Los Angeles-Glendale area, I looked at the HIGHEST wage occupations like doctors, lawyers, professors, engineers, scientists, and many others.

I found your wage rates, benefit rates and perks to be extremely high relative to other people here in Glendale who pay the taxes.

The fundamental intent of proposition 13 was (1) to control the cost of government and (2) to prevent people from losing their homes from high property taxes.

But I believe your budget and wage scales undermine the intent of proposition 13.

Over the last decade, you have only been able to keep things afloat with things like: the windfall property tax revenue associated with the housing bubble, massive transfers from water and power budgets, utility fees, and new fees and a variety of other tricks.

Next time you are at a cocktail party, tell people about the wages and benefits of some of the jobs here in Glendale. I guaranty you will see their jaws drop.

When Glendale’s top 100 job classifications (not employees but job classifications, some of which have many employees) have a top step of their salary base averaging almost $150,000 (before adding in bonuses, premiums, differentials, etc.), and where a fire employee can retire at age 51 with almost $200,000 a year, you need to clean up your act.

I ask that you begin reigning in the out-of-control wage and benefit structure. As someone who has had to make massive budget cuts over the years, the sooner you take action, the better.

Thank you.