Since taking office last July, one of my primary focuses as Mayor has been getting the county’s fiscal house in order and adjusting our spending to meet the demands of this challenging economy. Hardworking families throughout our community have had to tighten their belts, and government must do the same.
Two weeks into my term, I presented a County budget that maintained vital public services while rolling back property tax rates and easing the financial burden on cash-strapped residents. At that time, I made it clear that my proposal would not be possible without shared sacrifices from our dedicated public servants.
One week later, on July 19th, the Board of County Commissioners considered my proposed property tax rollback. I explained in very direct terms that my plan would require significant adjustments to the pay and benefits of the roughly 26,000 County employees, the vast majority of whom are represented by labor unions. I also advised that they would likely have to make some tough personnel decisions in coming months as a result of adopting my recommended plan. They acknowledged these facts and the proposal was approved by a 9-1 vote.
In September, the Commission adopted the budget I submitted based on that proposal and since then, my administration has negotiated in good faith with the County’s labor unions to reach fair, mutually-agreeable contracts that capture the savings required by the leaner budget. We have made good progress to that end, arriving at substantial agreements with the majority of bargaining units. The one issue that remained unresolved was an additional 5 percent employee contribution to healthcare costs. That contribution is needed to balance the budget, and was only proposed after unions rejected a number of alternatives offered by my administration.
It is important to note that the County’s 3,000 non-union employees – those who fall under my purview – have been paying the additional 5 percent healthcare contribution since last July. I imposed that measure less than two weeks after taking office, understanding that timely spending adjustments were needed in order to meet our obligation to balance the budget.
On January 5th, the issue of the additional 5 percent healthcare contribution for a number of unions – including those representing police and corrections officers – went before the County Commission for consideration. The decision they had to make was clear: approve the additional 5 percent contribution on all employees in affected bargaining units or move ahead with the layoffs of hundreds of County employees, as well as the resulting service reductions, to make up the budget shortfall.
Given what seemingly was a clear choice, to avoid layoffs and preserve services by imposing the additional 5 percent contribution, a majority of Commissioners instead chose to implement layoffs. Seven Commissioners gave into the pressure of politically influential labor unions, sacrificing the greater good of the County organization and the 2.7 million residents we serve.
At a time when faith in government is badly eroded, this issue creates an opportunity for elected leaders to begin rebuilding the broken public trust. The people who elevate us to office – the public whom we represent and serve – entrust us to make decisions that are prudent and in the best interests of the community as a whole. It’s a sobering responsibility and the decisions we make are not always easy ones.
Wednesday, I vetoed the commission’s shortsighted decision. This veto is not only about the $35 million in savings that would have been realized if the four impasse items were approved last week. There are four remaining unions with contract issues pending. At this point, the combined value of the 5 percent healthcare contribution of those four unions totals approximately $30 million. Given the precedent set by the Board on January 5th, my administration must be prepared to address possible unrealized savings totaling $65 million for this fiscal year alone. Because these are three year contracts, that figure would balloon to over $180 million if left unresolved.
On January 24th, those commissioners who voted in the majority will have a chance to reconsider their action, based on the totality of the facts before them: layoffs, service reductions and a potential $65 million impact. I challenge them to decide in favor of what is in the very best interest of the residents of Miami-Dade County who we serve.
It’s time for these elected leaders to live up to their responsibilities.