Article Photos

Mayor Gabriel J. Campana gave City Council his 2010 budget proposal Friday night and confirmed three firefighter positions will be eliminated unless their union agrees to health care concessions.

After noting aspects of his $18.1 million budget proposal - such as the fact it contains no tax increase - the mayor addressed staffing levels and confirmed it calls for cutting the number of non-administrative firefighter positions from 33 to 30.

The mayor then went on to reference an arbitration ruling earlier this year ordering the city to upgrade the salaries and health-care benefits of firefighters hired under the earlier seven-year contract.

He said health care costs for employees next year will be more than $2.8 million and providing them to the firefighters "without an employee contribution can not be sustained."

The administration does not recommend any other layoffs in any other departments at this time.

Campana said the administration asked the union, without success, to accept the $500 major medical deduction other city unions have accepted.

He said the concession "would save the city over $50,000," and the union's reaction "forced (the administration) to lay off three employees to avoid a tax increase." After the presentation he told the Sun-Gazette the total savings from the layoffs would be about $150,000.

Fire Chief C. Dean Heinbach had made no public comment about the proposed layoffs, but after the mayor's budget message he was asked about the impact of losing three firefighters. Heinbach conceded it would mean remaining firefighters will be called on to work more overtime.

"Obviously any time you lose manpower, it's a concern for the command staff," he said.

Most of the off-duty city firefighters were present for the mayor's budget message.

Afterward, Keith Lucas, union vice president, said the administration didn't provide the information they needed to "accurately vote" on its request.

"We're not going to vote on something on something when we don't know what we're voting on," he said, suggesting the mayor was trying to strongarm the union in the wake of the arbitration ruling.

That ruling came after the union and the city failed to negotiate a new contract after a seven-year contract designed to increase fire department manpower approved during the administration of Mayor Michael Rafferty and once called historic.

The contract created a two-tier schedule with new hires paid less than veteran firefighters and not provided health coverage for their families.

Lucas and other firefighters present for the mayor's message said the city reaped significant savings from those seven years but failed to live up to the promises that led to the contract.

The 2010 budget budget proposal is about $1.6 million more than the budget approved by council a year ago and contains no other employee cuts.

Highlights during the mayor's budget message included $500,000 in projected revenue next year from building permits - an estimate the mayor said he trusts, given that the projection in this year's budget was adjusted downward to $205,000 by council and $722,100 already has been collected.

He also said the administration plans to spend $800,000 for street resurfacing and has designated $1.9 million for the city's 2010 minimum municipal pension fund obligation and set aside another $504,000 toward its 2011 obligation.

Public safety remains the biggest cost to city taxpayers, accounting for $12.3 million of the budget with the police department accounting for $6.7 million, the fire department, $4.8 million, and the codes department about $500,000.