As readers of this column know, we have spent much time evaluating and criticizing the spending habits of the various local governments, especially in the personnel areas of salaries, benefits and overtime. It appears that this is now being addressed in many areas because of the twin necessities imposed by State legislation and reduced tax revenues. The City of Stuart appears to have taken the lead and produced a budget that meets the constraints imposed while maintaining services

Many Departments within the County Administration are working on reducing the short fall and/or maintaining services without taxpayer funding. One example is the “Treasured Lands Foundation” the Parks and Recreation Department has been working to establish. This organization will help develop and keep up land purchased through taxes and government grants and reduce the requirement for government maintenance funds. The idea of soliciting contributions and volunteer management for this purchase has been in the planning stage for several years. A Board of Directors utilizing prominent local resident volunteers is now in place and donations to cover initial organizing efforts have been provided. The paperwork necessary for designation as a tax-exempt charitable corporation have been generated and full operation of the Foundation is immanent.

Other initiatives to save or generate funds came to light during our July Board of Director’s meeting hosted by the Tax Collector as part of our continuing effort to visit with all of the County’s Constitutional Officers. In an effort to trim their budget they have closed their Jensen Beach office and reduced their payroll. With four other offices and mail service this should have little effect on customer service. We were also pleased to note that the Tax Collector’s operations are actually generating revenue for the County by volunteering to perform services for the State such as issuing drivers licenses. Since other neighboring counties do not do so and may have only one State office many of their residents use our offices and these operations generate a significant profit that is returned to the County.

We do believe their new headquarters; apparently “supersized” during our housing/revenue boom, seems exceptionally spacious and well appointed for the amount of customer traffic observed. While service is definitely a priority some further consolidation of the department appears possible.

Steps are also being taken to assist in bringing new sources of revenue to the County. The most prominent of these is the Economic Stimulus Program currently under consideration by the Board of County Commissioners. This is an important tool that can help ensure economic vitality, increase the size of our tax base, and eventual allow provision of more services to the citizens of Martin County. This program is part of a comprehensive strategy to encourage economic development and create high value jobs in our County. The existing business community will also benefit due to the substantial reduction in time and expense needed to obtain requisite governmental approvals. The most important benefits for eligible projects are the streamlined, consolidated and coordinated regulatory process and the requirement that local
governments issue a decision within ninety days.

A number of vocal critics suggest that this program will relax our regulatory controls and lead to undesirable development. This is simply not the case. If a proposed project is incompatible or poorly planned it will be rejected since our development standards do not change. It will just happen quicker and the business of government can carry on in a more efficient manner. Desirable projects will have essentially been fast-tracked and encouraged through economic incentives to locate in our County. Any incentives will be structured in such a way that they are only given AFTER these new or expanding businesses meet specific goals that increase County revenues. In effect they become self funding

The economic goal of this or any other program must be to strengthen and diversify Martin County's economy while preserving the substantive permitting requirements that protect our key natural resources, environment, and quality of life.

It is unfortunate that so many County jobs and personnel have had to be eliminated and services trimmed. With that in mind it is particularly troubling that the much ballyhooed 5% “give-back” of ½ of the Fire/EMS 10% contractual raise for 2009 is now being tied to County concessions. These include spending the saved money hiring additional firefighters and procuring new equipment that may not be needed if the consolidation with Stuart Fire/EMS materializes. The IAFF also wants a two-year extension of their contract at 5% salary increase per year, no increase in medical deductibles, and other management concessions.

Our Fire/EMS personnel are excellent and the service they provide among the most important required of our local government. However, they are now killing the golden goose. They have enjoyed unprecedented salary increases that have more than doubled their take home pay in less than 8 years. Since these are across the board increases senior personnel are now routinely exceeding $100,000 a year and many are over $150,000. Just the retirement and lifetime benefits being accrued for this 285-person department will eventually cost our County over $1.5 billion in taxes over the next 35-40 years

This NOT a good deal for the County Administration, especially the workers being eliminated. It is NOT a good deal for the County’s residents as they pay more for less services, parks and libraries. The County should NOT accept it. Let the IAFF keep their 10% increase and answer to the irate residents when they negotiate their next contract in a non-election year. Hopefully a new era of more reasonable personnel policies will have evolved by then.