In January the voters of Florida overwhelming approved the Constitutional Amendment increasing the homestead exclusion, allowing portability of that exemption, and placing further limits on property taxes. Now our local governments have to deal with the limitations this places on their finances. This is exactly why we recommended approval even though the bill had flaws and was badly written. We also believe the Legislature has noted the mood of the public and will continue to make adjustments in the implementing legislation and work to reduce the inherent inequities for businesses and non-homestead residents.

The direct reductions in County revenue brought about by this amendment, plus the softening of the local economy have resulted in large reductions in Martin County’s 2009 income forecast. For the 1 st quarter of this year Impact Fees are down by almost 70% or some $3.1 million dollars. Sales taxes are down 13 %, fuel taxes are down 6% and tourism tax is down 2.7%. It is now estimated that the total 2009 budget will have to be reduced by at least 20 million dollars. This has caused the County Administrator to require every department to submit a draft budget that is some 10 - 15% less than 2008’s. Eventually priorities will be applied and we estimate there will be at least a 5% cut from 2008’s $395 million budget and result in a total budget of about $375 million or about a 9% total reduction from the all time high of $411 million in 2007. On the surface, it would seem that less than a 10% cut over two years should be easy to attain. However, personnel costs have continued to rise to the point that they are now anywhere from 85 – 94% of the County’s various operational budgets. Compounding the problem are the salary increases already mandated by existing union contracts, current personnel policies and the rapid spike in energy costs. This leaves few places to cut except employees and/or their total compensation.

Estimates have been floated forecasting the loss of up to 100 of the County’s 900+ positions. This number may well have originally been an effort to warn the public of the consequences of a yes vote, but with the current economic realities this figure may now have to be achieved unless current contract provisions and personnel policies are changed. These reductions will be difficult to attain and we have empathy for the Administrators and managers having to meet these realities, especially in an election year.

The uncertainty that has been created by not quickly and professionally addressing these personnel issues are making them ever harder to solve in a compassionate manner. Also, finger pointing and undercutting what should be clear lines of authority are generating another negative – employees paralyzed by fear. Many of our members report drastically slower response from Administration Staff, even on mundane issues. Some workers have actually said, while others indicate by their actions, they fear making decisions and tenaciously hold on to “work” in their departments as a job protection measure.

The Sheriff has already offered a few early retirements and the County Administrator is implementing a much more expansive option. If accomplished correctly, and implemented early enough in this fiscal year, an attractive severance package will still achieve considerable savings that will grow over time. However, the practices that brought on the County’s problems such as automatic cost-of-living and longevity raises, sell back of sick leave and vacation time, and automatic overtime scheduling must be eliminated for these actions to remain effective.

If these reductions are done in conjunction with modernization/automation of labor and time intensive operations, it is possible to eliminate jobs and actually improved service. For example there are areas where reductions in the size of Staff are already overdue. To anyone that has been to the drivers license / tax collector’s offices in the last few years the over staffing and over equipping is obvious. In numerous visits our members consistently report 4 to 5 times as many employees/work stations on duty as “customers”. - at each of their 5 separate offices. There are already efforts within the Tax Collectors office to downsize to four offices next year, but we believe with more and more services offered by mail/computer, procedures could be streamlined and at least two of those five offices could be closed with little adverse affect on service. Other personnel policies can be initiated such as leaving normally vacated positions unfilled or downgraded and moving excess personnel from one area to another or even to an entirely different department, that has an opening or higher priority.

There have been several attempts over the years to combine the Fire/EMS services of Stuart and Martin County. This is now under active consideration again and has the potential for considerable savings in several areas. Realignment of service boundaries could allow closure of at least one fire station. Adding additional trained personnel along with reducing duplicated management positions, especially at the most senior levels, could significantly reduce their multi-million dollar overtime budget. Savings on equipment and its maintenance should also be substantial.

We have offered these suggestions, but the County Administrator and Constitutional Officer’s are the best judges of where savings should be made. We can only hope that they will be allowed to work these types of solutions and personnel reductions without undue influence from an election year Commission.