Newton Avoids Budget Cuts in Governor's Local Aid Plan

Yesterday, Governor Patrick released his proposed Fiscal Year 2011 local aid budget, which would provide Newton with almost the identical local aid we received last year (about $20 million total, including $14 million in Chapter 70 School Aid $5 million in unrestricted local aid, and various grants). That's great news for two reasons: 1) the legislature rarely cuts local aid below a governor's request, often increasing the numbers and 2) Newton's budget projections have been based on the assumption that we would have a significant cut in local aid.

I believe that it will now be possible to balance Newton's Fiscal Year 2011 budget without cuts in services or increases in class size if the union contracts can be settled for and amount that does not exceed the rate of increase in our costs. That probably means either a freeze in base salary or health insurance concessions, since offering the same health insurance package and a base salary hike would likely push our costs beyond revenue increases.

The logical position for the School Committee and Mayor to take in contract negotiations is that our increased local revenues (mostly property taxes) will be needed to pay increased health insurance costs, so without an increase in state aid, we cannot offer a wage increase in FY '11. Of course, most of the unions have yet to settle their Fiscal Year '10 contracts with the city, so a great deal of work remains to secure a balanced budget without service cuts in the new budget. The key indicator of Mayor Warren's intentions will be whether he budgets any funds for salary increases in the budget reserve account of his Fiscal Year 2011 proposed operating budget.

President Shakes Nation with History-Making Address

President Obama Addresses Congress and the NationI always expect President Obama to give a good speech, but I was pleaseantly surprised by last night's State of the Union Address, which I believe may go down in history as one of the most effective in decades. Washington DC respects strength and last night our President took on the Supreme Court and the US Senate with grace, style and humor. He also explained his policies in clear and compelling terms and laid out an inspiring agenda for the next year.

Last night's speech laid down the gauntlet. If the Republicans only strategy is to create gridlock, President Obama will call them out on it and appeal directly to the American people to elect reasonable, toughtful leaders to Congress who are willing to put the public interest before their own political ambitions.

Anyone who filibusters the Presidents Jobs Bill or Climate Change legislation is now warned that they will be held accountable for their actions.

And somehow President Obama managed to get this tough message across without seeming heavy-handed. In fact, his admissions of mistakes and humble tone made his speeh all the more powerful.

If ever a speech can alter the course of history, this one is a strong candidate to do so. Now, with a little backbone from the Democrats in Congress and continued pressure from the President, we might make real progress toward President Obama's goal of a full-employment economy in 2010.

Governor Patrick Proposes Pension Reform

According to a press release issued today, Governor Patrick is proposing to cap public employee pensions at $85 thousand per year and to changer the way pensions are calculated to limit abuses and raise retirement ages. Governor Patrick says that his proposed changes will save the state $2 billion over the next 30 years. Assuming that the reforms apply to cities and towns, the implications for Newton could be considerable. For example, a retiring department head making $130 thousand who retires at 80% pension would receive a pension of $104 thousand per year under the old system. Check out the press release and post your comments!

Welcome to a new chapter

I've decided to turn my former campaign website into a community blog for discussion policy issues facing Newton and beyond. Please email me at ken@kenparker.org if you would like to blog on our site. Also, please let us know what you think of the new look. Thanks to Shawn for making the changes!