Abele’s Budget Math Off by $2.5 Million
County Executive Chris Abele provided the County Board with an unbalanced budget on Monday, because he failed to apply his proposed fringe benefits increase to all the appropriate job classifications.
County Executive Chris Abele provided the County Board with an unbalanced budget on Monday, because he failed to apply his proposed fringe benefits increase to all the appropriate job classifications.
“The County Executive’s unbalanced budget has a $2.5 million hole in it,” said Board Chairman Theodore Lipscomb, Sr. “County Executive Abele has already proposed an increase in property taxes, plus a $60 wheel tax, leaving few options for fixing his $2.5 million error.”
Abele has proposed filling the $2.5 million hole by using the County’s debt service reserve fund.
“Abele’s budget fits a familiar pattern, where he proposes spending increases but doesn’t include a plan for how to pay for everything he wants.” said Lipscomb.
Abele’s proposed 2014 budget had a similar $1.5 million hole that left his proposal unbalanced.
Abele’s 2017 budget increases the property tax levy by nearly 1.5% to account for growth and introduces a $60 wheel tax. Budget director Steve Kreklow suggested in a memo to the County Board that the $2.5 million hole could be filled by again tapping into the debt service reserve, a one-time fix that would increase the county’s structural deficit in future years.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
Mentioned in This Press Release
Recent Press Releases by County Board Chairman Theodore Lipscomb, Sr.
You created an entitlement because bus ridership has gone down. Bus riders have decided to choose Uber over the reeks of booze or body odor that fill to many County buses, so it must be made free to the masses. You and your team assisted in putting a hole in to our County finances. You signed on to free bus rides and now you expect other lower class citizens to pay for it. Jimmy John’s employees, Pizza Hut drivers, or Heiser Ford employees. You pit one faction of the poor against another group of working poor who are just living pay check to pay check.. How do you expect our local economy to grow and prosper when you rob citizens of $60 each year for simple transportation on top of the $75 they all ready pay the state for inferior transportation services.
Jason is there evidence that bus riders are abandoning the bus for Uber? Isn’t ride sharing a lot more expensive than taking the bus? I find it hard to believe that people who use the bus regularly can afford to use ride sharing regularly.
PMD maybe it was Bublr bikes….who knows? The point is ridership is down. I rode MCTS for almost twenty years regularly. Not many riders really enjoy the homeless experience or the transportation of recycled beer cans, or the smell of stale cigarettes. How about the rudeness of fellow passengers, the vulgarities or maybe the disrespect given to the bus drivers.
Who knows so just make stuff up? Interesting way to construct an argument.
PMD, why don’t you ask THEO where all the riders went. MCTS had a great brand 20 years ago.
So what changed? Why were there no problems with homelessness or beer cans or the smell of stale smoke 20 years ago? Is that a problem on every route or just the one you are familiar with? If people don’t have their own car and can’t afford ride sharing, but they aren’t taking the bus anymore because of the problems you allege, what are they using for transportation? Is ridership possibly down for other reasons that have nothing to do with homeless riders or beer cans?
PMD: ridership went down because the riders don’t have jobs to go to anymore. Vote democrat and this is what you get.
Sure thing Grover Norquist. You must have been multitasking, typing that while Fox News was telling you what to think.
lol