Is county budget a holiday gift, or lump of coal?
The three outgoing Republican members of Delaware County Council have a little parting gift for county taxpayers.
Call it an early Christmas gift.
The GOP majority passed a $358 million dollar budget with no tax hike. That makes six years in a row that County Council has held the line on taxes.
A little goodwill toward men (and woman) of Delco, right?
So all is calm, all is bright and there is joy to the world, right?
Well, not exactly.
That budget passed on a 3-2 vote. The two minority Democratic members of council, Brian Zidek and Kevin Madden, both voted against the spending plan. Not only that but they accuse their outgoing GOP brethren of dumping what could be a looming fiscal crisis in their laps.
The Democrats believe the Republicans are using some sleight-of-hand, noting they are dipping into the county’s reserve fund to the tune of $23 million. They counter that the fiscal plan adopted on that 3-2 vote is being propped up by that infusion of revenue from the surplus. They say the Republicans are “kicking the can down the road” and directly into the laps of the Democrats.
That’s because come January, County Council will feature a 5-0 Democratic majority for the first time in county history. Council Chair John McBlain and Vice Chair Colleen Morrone could not serve another term. Michael Culp elected not to run for re-election. Three new Democrats,
Christine Reuther, Monica Taylor and Elaine Schaefer will join Zidek and Madden on the ruling body.
The Democrats offered a move to cut costs rather than dip into the county’s reserves. They offered an amendment for a 2.5 percent across-theboard cost cut. That sparked a spirited discussion before falling on the expected 3-2 vote.
Morrone did offer one costcutting solution. She suggested eliminating 21 county positions that have been vacant from as far back as
2014. She suggested using the
$600,000 in savings to deliver a 2.3 percent cost-of-living boost for retired county employees. They have not had a boost in their retirement since
2005 and Morrone the adjustment could be made with the savings from the vacant position cuts while still being cost neutral to the budget.
That drew this response from her Dem counterpart Madden: “So basically what we are doing is doubling down on the deficit that we’re already proposing passing and we’re expanding on that.”
McBlain was quick to defend raiding the surplus, noting that it’s at an all-time high of $65. He also was quick to point out that Democrats offered no analysis of the effect of a 2.5 percent cut on county services or employees.
“As politically attractive as it is, I think it is asinine and irresponsible to propose a reduction like that without any analysis,” McBlain said.
The Democrats countered that there are a few economic icebergs in the water ahead for the county, including an upgrade to the county emergency radio system that will cost $50 million and a capital plan to attack the county’s crumbling infrastructure that could set the county back another $100 million over the next three years.
See if you can guess how the votes went. The cost-cutting measure got shot down. The hike for retirees. Both on 3-2 votes, with Republicans holding sway.
That scenario will change come the first week of the new year, when Delaware County will enter a new era of Democratic rule. Zidek and Madden are vowing that they will revisit the budget then.
“Over the next few months and years, the new council will work closely with our budget director’s office, the executive director and all of the department heads to start with a blank slate,” Zidek said. “We’ll examine how every dollar is spent in the county to make sure that no dollar is wasted.
“Some budget lines will be increased, but many will be decreased. It’s going to take a lot of work to revise how business is done in Delco.”
For now, residents can enjoy this parting holiday gift from the county GOP, a county budget that will not force them to dig any deeper into their wallet.
But be warned that the incoming Democrats are warning the GOP is actually pulling a bit of a Scrooge act here, dumping coal in the stockings of the incoming Democratic board, which will have to deal with the fallout of this spending plan and the economic challenges on the horizon.
Goodwill toward men. But on the county budget? That’s a little harder to deliver.