Trashing Toledo over Trash Collection

The previous Mayor and the current Mayor are trashing Toledo over trash collection, we have been under siege for 5 years and it is reaching of level of ridiculous. Here are the travails of Toledo trash as it has evolved:

Former Mayor:
· Eliminated recycle programs, as they were expensive and useless.
· Fined if trash put to the line before 7:00 p.m. (he thought it unattractive)
· Pick ups moved from alleys to streets (alleys were too cluttered but he would not clean them)
· Collection routes consolidated, employees cut
· "Leap forward" program initiated to eliminate Saturday pick ups after holidays
· Automated trash collection equipment purchased to replace old, antiquated trucks and further reduce crews. Now one-man crews rather than 3 man crews
· 2007 added trash "fee" in budget
· Council approved the "fee".
· Extolled the fee as a way to increase recycling from residents.
· Extolled the fee as a way to maintain our "Cadillac service"
· 2008, Council moved the "fee" from the budget to an ordinance.
Current Mayor
· Raised the refuse "fee" to bump up the general fund coffers
· Council approved the increase.
· Said he would discard "Leap forward" program, too confusing, but has not, we continue to live with color coded calendars.
· Residents must call for bulk pick up (24 hours in advance changed to 72 hours notice,)
· Proposed change to bulk pick up per quarter only, $50 fee for additional
· No longer pick up bulk trash from evictions sites.
· Proposed $300 fine for overfilling refuse bins
· Allow residents to purchase another bin for $75; however may incur an additional fee for pick up.
· Proposed a fine if a resident says they recycle but they do not

Since passage of the trash "fee", the amount of the fee has been a moving target adjusted to reconcile a bloated general budget, which is out of control. These are the expenditures for trash in years 2004 through 2008:
· $10,324,386/ 2004 Expenditure
· $10,840,653/ 2005 Expenditure
· $11,348,331/ 2006 Expenditure
· $11,716,547/ 2007 Expenditure
· $11,348,181/ 2008 Budget

Where is the justification for the fees charged for trash in addition to the income taxes paid into the general fund? Resolve the budget, not with more taxes, fees and fines; but through hard decisions, which must be made. The current direction of this Administration as with the previous Administration is trashing Toledo over trash collection.

Reciprocity vs. Regionalism

There is a great deal of conversation about Regionalism in government, is it
not time for Residential Regionalism?

To eliminate the reciprocity agreement would be very harmful to Toledo. It would be a determining factor to those who may want to live in Toledo even though they work outside our city. In all the comments about the residents who work outside Toledo , nothing is said about the thousands who work in Toledo but live outside the city. Their payroll taxes are paid to the place of employment not the place of residency. Toledo gets it all.

Have we reached a point in this region that the place of employment will dictate the place of residency? Where is Residential Regionalism?

Additionally, there was the option of adding 1/4 per cent temporary increase to the income tax for voter approval, or take the option to end reciprocity. Once again the choice is

Taxation through the stroke of the pen,,, instead of
Taxation through the stroke of the vote.

Negotiations in Good Faith? NOT

If the average yearly income of a police officer is $50,000, the 10% PERZ pick up that they employee should pay but the city picks up would equal $5,000. In the last "negotiation" that Mr. Reinbolt supposedly signed off on, it is reported that the union agreed to pay their 10% for one year ($5000 x 1100 employees which includes the fire department $5,500,000). Looks good, reasonable and responsible on the part of the Union to accept such concessions... until the 26 extra days with pay is factored into the numbers. So you realize, 26 days X $192 per day pay = $5000, a wash, no savings. What would we gain? Where are the concessions?

Also consider this,
26 days extra days off with pay
21 days vacation
13 holidays
14 days sick leave (which accumulates)
and we have 14 weeks off per police officer with several years service,$50,000 per year annual salary (plus overtime) and no contribution to health benefits. How can we sustain a police force with part time police at full time pay?

To support this pay and benefit package, City Council is to demand of the residents that we pay more taxes and fees to support this type of contract. Unbelievable and inconceivable.

WE CAN NO LONGER SUPPORT SUCH OUTLANDISH CONTRACTS!

A Thought on the Toledo Deficit

Throughout the process of trying to balance the budget, the Administration has continued to demand increased revenue with little or no conviction, to cut costs. Numerous times, the Mayor has gone back to Council demanding increased taxes and fees to supplement the budget. He has threatened to layoff police officers and after issuing pink slips, gone back to Council demanding more revenue. We are now 4 full months into a year in which it was well recognized there was a budget deficit. We are now at crunch time and to save the 150 police from being laid off, the Mayor again has gone to Council demanding more revenue.

We sit poised, waiting for their decision at the meeting this evening. What will they do, allow the layoffs? Increase the refuse fee? Cut the reciprocity?

Is there a grand scheme in all this? Well, here is a theory worth considering.

1. Whether Carty runs again or not, he intends to be a force in the political scene of Toledo.
2. He has always had the support of the fire and police unions. To stay politically powerful, he needs their continued support.
3. The only way to balance the budget is to increase revenue or cut spending. To cut spending effectively, he must negotiate down the contracts with the police and fire and do away with the extremely generous packages which he gave them previously.
4. If he cuts their benefits, he would lose their support.

How can he maintain the police and fire support and still balance the budget?
1. Give the pretense of negotiating contracts
2. Give the pretense of cutting costs
3. Delay the process to the last possible moment to increase the fear
4. Plan to layoff a ridiculous number of police to scare the electorate
5. Plan to layoff a ridiculous number of police to force Council to increase revenue to ensure this does not happen

Would the Mayor do this? Sadly, I believe he has.

Tough Decisions in Tough Times

This is a difficult time in Toledo and City Council has many tough decisions to make. How can you balance the budget effectively and prepare for the future of Toledo.
Regardless of the decisions made, votes taken and outcome, it is essential to acknowledge the sincere, honest effort each Council representative puts into the decisions made. Thank you for all your hard work on behalf of the residents of Toledo in such a stressful time.

I offer the following…
Increasing revenue through additional taxes, fees, or assessments may, in the very short term, solve the issue; however, in the long term, it will further alienate residents and businesses and continue the exodus from Toledo.

What are the alternatives?
First, and foremost, reducing the police force by 150 is surreal, unacceptable and irresponsible. There are 3000 employees in Toledo and for a division of 650 to lose 20% of their staff is unimaginable and unreasonable. If the Federal Government is allowing the funds for 40 police officers, why then are the cuts necessary.

The Mayor is taking this approach for 2 reasons, one to force concessions from the Unions and (2) to force Council to bend in his direction of continuing increases in taxes, assessments and fees. Don’t weaken and don’t yield. He is wrong, if he threatens until hell freezes over, he is still wrong.

If 150 more must be cut, take them from unessential services. There are private organizations, which would take on the recreation services and many other services the city now pays to provide. Utilize the private sector.

The Unions are saying they are trying to negotiate the contracts, but also are saying the will not offer concessions. Concessions are not an option they are an essential necessity. The contracts need to be more in line with the private sector. It is a bitter pill to swallow as it was for those of us who work in the private sector and had to also swallow that pill, but that is the medicine needed to fix this economic epidemic. Don’t look for more revenue you must require responsible contracts.

If staff has been cut to 32 hours per week, if refuse collection crews have cut routes and overtime by the rolling pickup schedule, and our employment rate is only 5% higher than the low of 7.5% in 2005, it does not seem possible the gap in the deficit is as great as the Mayor suggests. What has been offered to prove the deficit amount?

Before jumping into privatization of refuse collection, carefully check the numbers. In February, I provided a study of the cost of private companies versus city service and it does not bear out a savings. The study was prior to the changes in crew sizes, changes in routes and rolling schedules (which I consider long overdue).

I DON’T BELIEVE IT!

The budget which is reviewed in a PDF file can be provided by the treasurer in an excel spreadsheet which could easily be assessed and used to determine what is causing the gap. Request and .xls format you can analyze. If you already have one, please forward so I can review. I would like to do a study of the data.

In the end, when the economy improves and one reflects on this very difficult time, I ask this: if the fire protection fee reimbursement ordinance passes, if the refuse fee increase passes, if reciprocity is cut, and city government sees the income continue from these sources, will they continue or will they be discontinued. As with the ¾% temporary tax, the revenue will be used and become necessary. But what then, will we lose more residents due to the increased cost and will we lose more businesses, as more fines, taxes and assessments are set? Will our home insurance rates be increased to cover the decision by Council to bill back the charges for fires and other fire department services?
Why do we pay income tax? When will Toledoans see relief?

Suggestion: Go back about 15 years, 30 years and 45 years and look at a budget and what services were offered in those years. Compare the services and see what changes can be made. I finally realized that so many services we offer in the City started out as a very nice program provided by the private sector and non-profits and seemed like such a good idea, the City took over the programs. We can no longer keep absorbing all the programs that seemed so valuable. Even something as small as the Easter egg hunt… any church in a neighborhood offered egg hunts, why in the world did the City support one also? The church on Strayer Rd. dropped 20,000 eggs from a helicopter!!! Why did the City even consider do an egg hunt? Not only was it a waste of our funds, but also of personnel, printing and advertising.

In this difficult time, get back to basics, police, and fire and refuse collection. These three budget items are first and always attacked in a budget crunch with the intent to frighten residents and Council into compliance to the will of the Mayor. Be tough, be firm and be careful.

With sincerity, I offer thanks for your willingness to represent us in such a difficult environment.

Fire Protection, Insurance and Another Money Grab

I'm mad as hell and don't want to take it anymore. This is insane. Has Mike Craig never purchased house insurance? When we purchase home insurance, a portion of the decision of the rate is based on whether your community provides fire protection and they even ask how far from your house is a hydrant located. If close and the community provides fire protection, the rate is lower. Absolutely, if the insurance companies start getting billed for the service we pay taxes to provide, the insurance companies for everyone in Toledo will be raised to cover the cost.

I am so sick and tired of this I would like to scream. Have the guts to renegotiate the contracts, cut services temporarily in non-essential areas and move forward when the economy improves. By the time the fire department starts seeing the little bit of revenue from this money grab, the economy will have improved.

Dumb... dumb and dumber!

White Paper: Fixing Toledo

After 2 years of campaigning, some of the issues facing Toledo have become very clear and the resistance to deal with the issues by elected officials is often driven by a concern they may lose the backing of the unions and city employees. The last election highlighted the reality of this as the electorate did not vote. Those elected won by connections in the political and union arena, not by issues, so to survive as an elected official, there is logic in appeasing the political party and unions. However, this is not to the benefit of Toledoans and we need elected officials to work for the good of the city not the good of the unions. Though my venture into Toledo politics is over, my concerns are not.

We need a good school system but we don’t have one. The city can do everything right to grow economically, but it will not until the school system or alternative schools offer our children a good education. Middle-income families are fleeing Toledo to the suburbs to escape the ineffective public school system. The chokehold TFT (Toledo Federation of Teachers) has on the system inhibits creative, flexible and innovative programs.

We have more than enough revenue in the general budget, we just plain blew it when we negotiated the city labor contracts and gave away the bank. Residents of Toledo do not need to pay more taxes; we need to realign the employee compensation to reflect the market.

It is time to stop manipulating business opportunities to further political agendas. It does not take long for interested businesses to feel threatened and chose the suburbs to bypass Toledo politics.

The following is a list of recommendations offered for consideration by elected officials and residents of Toledo. Our community would be in a much better position if we approached the business of the City of Toledo as a business. The residents are the customers of City Government and we are not treated very well.

EDUCATION
Embrace charter schools and the voucher program, it is offering a much-needed alternative to a failing public school system and can be instrumental in retaining and recruiting families to Toledo. They also provide a buffer to the threat of teacher strikes. Criticizing charter schools because they are “for profit” is invalid as they must perform and meet the expectations of student’s parents or they will not stay in business.

TPS needs to earn back students through quality educational programs, not through squelching competition.

TPS personnel should observe successful charter schools as a learning experience not consider such visits a threat to TPS. The following quotes demonstrate the negative attitude regarding charter schools. Quote from TPS management personnel and an elected official: “it would be the same as a scab crossing the picket line” or “I wouldn’t step foot in one of those places”.

Send out a blind survey and ask the 60% of teachers and administrators of TPS why they don’t live in Toledo and also to those who do live in Toledo but send their children to private schools. They are the professionals in the industry; we need to understand why so many do not send their children to TPS and ask for recommendations to improve the system.

BUDGET
Taxpayers disapprove of the trash tax and threat of reduced services, as they should. Balance the budget by looking inward for cost savings not outward for more revenue. As the UAW recognized the necessity to adjust the contracts to retain auto industry jobs in this area, so likewise, the Union leaders representing city employees must recognize the same need with the city to keep the threat of privatization off the table. Without a realignment of city employee compensation, the electorate may very well revolt and demand privatization of services and refuse to pass the ¾% “temporary” payroll tax the city has enjoyed for over 15 years. Such recognition of reality and a partnership between the unions and the City is pro-union as it will ensure job retention while keeping the city healthy.

· Within two years, eliminate the 10% city pick up of the employee portion of payment to PERZ and provide a 5% pay increase
o First year: reduce by 5% the city pickup of the employee contribution to PERZ but provide an across the board 2.5% pay increase.
o Second year: again, reduce by 5% the city pickup of the employee contribution to PERZ but provide an across the board 2.5% pay increase.
· Effective Jan. 1, 2008, all city employees would contribute $100 per month towards their medical coverage and $20 co-pay for office visits and prescriptions.
· Establish a task force to study medical coverage programs offered by private industry in the surrounding area and modify the program accordingly.
· Establish a task force to study the general budget and determine what percent of the general budget should be applied to wages and benefit packages for police/fire and trash collection. This percent would be the benchmark for future contract negotiations.

BUSINESS & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
· Stop bundling groups of legitimate businesses to vilify (i.e., convenience stores). If they do not comply with the laws, take the appropriate legal measures.
· Review the cost and frequency of inspections. They may increase city revenue, but at what cost to small business.
· Create a complete list of all yearly inspections and the inspection costs to determine whether they are necessary (they have dramatically increased in frequency and cost over the past few years). Those identified as frivolous and designed primarily to increase revenue should be eliminated.
· Bundle into one package all costs and permits required to establish a new business; establish one office to administer all the information, forms and communication for businesses, simplify this process.
· Eliminate the living wage law in Toledo. It is used to manipulate businesses as it is not uniformly applied and hinders our ability to encourage new business.

Work with Toledo hotels to create shopping packages as Bass Pro is completed to draw visitors into Toledo as well as Wood County. With regional cooperation with Wood County both communities would benefit by creating “mini-vacations” for visitors.

CITY BEAUTIFICATION
Seek more volunteer organizations to handle the beautification projects.

CITY GOVERNMENT:
· Reduce the size of council. Keep the 6 district seats but reduce at large to 2 seats. Residents need a representative who is accountable to them, without district seats, who would be accountable to their calls for service and how would the requests be assigned to an all “at-large” council. However, we need “at-large” seats to embrace all district issues and assimilate the needs into a citywide view of the requests.
· Do not reduce the pay for the Mayor; it must be attractive enough to draw quality candidates.
· Respond to requests for information and not use the “right to information” laws to delay response and avoid providing answers.
· Answer emails and phone calls.
· Embrace business and stop agreeing to additional fees to supplement the budget when there are shortages.
· NO NEW TAXES – hidden or otherwise.
· Responding to the hype of political candidates is detrimental to the well-being of Toledo and should be banned.
· The Administration would be more successful by operating and administrating with positive reinforcement rather than negative. The negative approach is tolerated but discourages open dialogue, ideas and growth.
· If a program is going to change, consider the programs a contract with the residents and give at least 30 days proper notification before implementation.

POLICE
The police department could use some realigning. In 2006, the numbers were as follows:
692 number of policemen
300 number of patrolmen on the beat
120 number of Command officers
292 number of policemen assigned to other duties besides patrolling the streets
33 number of patrolmen on any given day out of service for various reasons
67 number of patrolmen available per day at each stationhouse for 3 shifts
· Create a relationship with Owens Community College to offer a degree which would prepare students to be employed by TPD after graduation so the “police class” could be cut from one year to 3 months.
· Determine an appropriate ratio for Command Officers to Beat Officers, a 3 to 1 ratio is too high. We need the men on the streets.
· What are the 292 policemen duties?
· In the morning and evening, position a police car at a school for 15 minutes during the busiest time and have the lights flashing. Rotate the school location each day so at the end of the week, there was a police presence at every school in the city. The police would still be available to respond to a call, but since they have to be somewhere in the city, why not at a school on school days.

INFRASTRUCTURE
Multiple calls of complaint are costly to the City, as they all deserve a response. Create a web-based list of all repair requests for streets, potholes, and complaints which can easily be accessed by residents. It could be a free Google spreadsheet with a link on the City Web Page. The list should be prioritized by severity, listing: location, type of call, date of call, date of expected repair, estimated cost of repair and completion date. To the public, there is no rhyme or reason to how the requests are considered, prioritized, or assigned, this would answer those questions.

VACANT PROPERTY
The city has ownership of hundreds of residential properties with 30’ frontage primarily in the central city. They all must be maintained by the city: grass mowing, snow removal, police patrolling, etc., which is a cost with no revenue to the city. It drains our resources and our budget. Make it inexpensive, simple and easy to get these properties off the city books and generate some revenue through property taxes.

· Have a fire sale; offer each property to any buyer for $1.00.
· Bundle the closing costs, title transfers, etc. into one simplified package and low cost fee; i.e., $25.00.
· If the property has a condemned house, bundle the permits required to demolish and into one package, again, at a low cost fee.
· Offer a $500 incentive to the owner upon completion of the demolition of the building.

REFUSE COLLECTION:
Not only the residents of Toledo, but Toledo as a whole benefits from the unlimited trash collection program, it is instrumental in keeping the city clean. Continue the program, we already pay for it.

Be consistent in the messages to residents. First we are told the Administration wants to eliminate recycling because it costs too much money and isn’t worth the cost. Then we are told we must recycle and to get residents involved, they will pay $3.00 per month. Educate the residents on the recycle program and be consistent.

Return trash pickup to the alleys. If an area is littered and needs cleaning, have the refuse truck driver note on a route list, turn it over to the appropriate compliance department issue a 30 day warning to the property owner. The notification should contain an estimate of cost for the city to clean the area. If not cleaned in 30 days, send a crew or hire an independent contractor to clean the area and send a bill to the owner.

When the ¾% temporary tax was passed, it was to include an incinerator. With the issue of landfills, recycling and energy, it is time to revisit the possibility of an incinerator. Technology advances can offer better processes and the heat emitted can be used to generate electricity. A committee should immediately begin researching the latest technology of refuse incineration.

For the health of Toledo, we need to move away from "politics as usual", our elected officials should be expected to make the difficult choices for the health of Toledo, not to ensure their next election.

Budget - To Balance or not to Balance in Nov, That is the Question

Should the Mayor present a balanced budget to City Council in November to? Balanced budgets have previously been presented in November, which Council then disassembled and reassembled to better serve the community. It was a coordinated effort and it was effective, but would it have been any less effective if the budget presented in November was not balanced?

If a budget is presented in November that is not balanced, Council is given an opportunity to look at the requests of city departments not just the requests as adjusted by the Administration. If a balanced budget is presented in November, Council is still expected to review and adjust the budget, not just rubber stamp a balanced budget.

On a much smaller scale, I’ve worked on budget committees, though smaller, the process was the same: departments submitted their budget requests to finance; finance calculated expected income; department budgets were returned and given another opportunity to make their own adjustments. Finance then submitted the budget (usually not balanced) to the council who then recommended adjustments to departments so the budget would balance.

For the benefit of the City, it is essential that the City Council and Administration work together to provide the most effective balanced budget possible each year. On council, I’ll work through either process with other council members and the Administration knowing the requirement is to balance the budget by March of each year

City Property for Sale

As a child, I grew up in a house on a 30 foot lot, the houses were so close, and we shared an eaves trough. The house next door fell into disrepair as it became rental property and the owners decided to sell. My grandfather lived in the house on the other side of the property, so he and my parents together purchased the house and decided to tear it down. One permit required it be fumigated and when we reached the kitchen and pulled down the plaster, the walls were lined with dead cockroaches, hundreds of them. After it was demolished, the property was split in 1/2 and we then had a 45 foot lot. It was so wonderful, we had a yard to play in and grow gardens and flowers. I flooded the side lot in the winter and had a "skating rink" and it was good.

The point of my story is this, why not sell 30 foot residential lots to the owners of adjoining property for $1.00, agree to bundle all required permits for a total cost of $25.00 and if they demolish the property, give a rebate for the cost once the demolition is completed. This could potentially eliminate 100's of "nuisance" properties, which must be maintained by the city, put them back on the property tax rolls.

City Budget on Excel Spreadsheet

If you are an Excel Spreadsheet user, I have converted the budget from the PDF file supplied to Joe McNamara into an excel spreadsheet. It is color coded to match the sections of the original and each section is on a separate tab. Using pivot tables is very useful in analyzing the data to consolidate data. It is posted on my Web page: Sanahanselect.com

Please let me know if you access the spreadsheet and if you found it useful.

Formal Announcement of Candidacy

Karen Shanahan for Toledo City Council – District 2 * Committee to Elect Shanahan
3633 Denise Dr. * Toledo OH 43614

www.shanahanselect.com

NEWS RELEASE May 19, 2007

Shanahan Announces Run for City Council District 2

Toledo, Ohio. Following a martial arts session at Martial Arts Center on Heatherdowns Boulevard, Karen Shanahan announced her candidacy for the Toledo City Council - District 2, for the election in November 2007. She chose this location because she enjoys the practice of martial arts there and because it is a good example of a successful small business in District 2.

Shanahan’s remarks:

I’m Karen Shanahan, here to announce my candidacy for Toledo City Council - District 2. I’m ready to serve and ready to make a difference. Although I’m a relative newcomer to politics, I have life experience that will benefit the citizens of District 2 and all Toledoans.

I’m committed to be your voice on City Council and, when elected, my main goals will be to:

Create the “Rough Roads Repair Registry” of District 2
Balance the city budget, not ask for a family budget balancing act
Bolster Block Watch
Supplement senior citizen support
Stand with Small Business in District 2

1. Create the “Rough Roads Repair Registry” of District 2
Our neighborhood roads need repair. As I create the “Rough Roads Repair Register,” I’m asking every homeowner in District 2 to send an email or call me if a road in our District needs repair.

2. Balance the city budget, not ask for a family budget balancing act
Our residents dig deep into their pockets to fund programs. I’ll ask the questions to ensure the funds are responsibly budgeted.

3. Bolster Block Watch
This is a great resource that encourages neighborhood interaction and security. By meeting regularly, getting better acquainted with our neighbors and receiving input for the Police representative, it increases awareness of what is occurring in the neighborhood and forms a stronger connection with each other.

4. Supplement Senior Citizen Support
Increase awareness of the conditions at the senior care facilities. After my husband recently had a stay in a rehabilitation center, it is obvious we must do better to care for our senior citizens. The services provided were marginal at best.

5. Stand with Small Business in District 2
The Martial Arts Center is a glowing example of a small business success story in District 2. The owners are enthusiastic, positive and energetic, and they continually give back to the community.

Because of the needs of the Reynolds Road corridor, we are going to reorganize the Small Business Alliance and I’ve pledged to lead the formation and implementation of an Action Task Force to tackle and resolve issues for small business in District 2.

I’ve contacted a nationally known economic development advisor who grew up in Toledo. He is willing to offer suggestions and advice to move District 2 forward.

I am a native of Toledo, grew up in the Old South End in a blue-collar family with strong Union affiliations. Rex and I have been married 42 years and have two adult children and one grandchild. I went to college after raising my children and am currently employed as a logistics professional at The Hub Group, where I focus on problem solving for customers from California to Texas to Indiana and other states in the Midwest. I will bring this problem-solving expertise to City Council.

I am Karen Shanahan - and I thank you for showing your concern for our community by joining me today in my run for Toledo City Council – District 2.

Roads or Roses Photo Album

I went through the neighborhood and took some photos of the streets on S Beverly Hills Drive, E. Beverly Hills Drive and Roberta. One of the neighbors mentioned they have not dome anything but patches in 20 years. The roads are in sad condition -- how does this look to visitors?

Roads or Roses

Council deemed it necessary to levy a new tax so the 2007 budget could be balanced. It is now even a greater responsibility for Council to ensure every expenditure is essential rather than optional.

The additional expenditure of $39,900 for flowers at the gateways is questionable when we have roads in District 2 that are in the condition of S. Beverly Hills Drive. Some may consider $39,900 a drop in the bucket against a budget in excess of $240,000,000, but every drop counts.

I urge Council to carefully weigh any spending requests – we need roads not roses.

BALANCE THE CITY BUDGET, DON’T BUDGET OUR FAMILY BALANCE

Prior to the Council vote for the budget on Friday, I held a press conference to encourage Council to stay strong against the trash tax.  I still feel there are unanswered questions, but wanted to share the text of the press conference on the blog page.
How should Council balance the budget?

We're told there has not been a tax increase since the ¾% increase was passed in 1982.

Incomes have increase 8 times since 1982.

This equates to 8 times more revenue per wage earner

I want to encourage City Council to remain committed to no new taxes or fees and let them know they have our support.

The 4.5 million increase in additional employee benefits increases the budget by 2% while the expected increase in revenue is estimated at 1.6%.

What comprises the remaining 4.8% increase?  During the Town Hall meeting, there were many charts and graphs showing how inexpensive our services were and how little we paid compared to other cities, however, there was not explanation what was the cause of the 4.8% increase. 

I received a 2% pay raise in January, then my employer raised the employee portion of medical insurance which absorbed 36% of the raise.  Should the trash tax pass, it will gobble up another 15% of the raise.

We have witnessed a decline of 60,000 residents over the past decade in Toledo.  The continued call for more taxes imposed on residents which will cause even a greater exodus of residents and   businesses.  Balance the city budget, don't budget our family balance!

INVITATION TO SUPPORT NO TRASH TAX

Council took the right step yesterday and did not vote for additional trash
tax or other "revenue enhancements" during the deliberations concerning the
budget. Council President, Rob Ludeman, stated he did not believe the
citizens would mind a "trash tax" as most of the complaints were about
closing the pools not regarding a "trash tax" and the Mayor believes the
same based on the Zogby poll. This adds pressure on Council to pass a
"trash tax".

If you would like to offer your support to Council to balance the budget and
not budget our family balance, join me this morning, March 30, 2007, at
11:15 a.m. near the recycle bins in the parking lot between Kroger Store and
Calvary Baptist Church on Glendale near Reynolds (across from Glendale
entrance to Maumee Valley Country Day School).