Bear Stearns, Fanny Mae, Freddie Mac, Indy Mac, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch have all been reorganized. Automotive giants General Motors, Ford and Dodge/Chrysler are on the edge. As this is being written Congress is debating a “by-out” of our financial institutions to the tune of some $700 billion tax dollars being put at risk. Just a few months ago there was debate on whether or not we were in a recession. Sometimes we get the feeling analysts live and work some other place. The real question is whether or not we will enter the “d” word…that’s right depression.

Most individual businesses and small companies are already burdened with heavy taxes and boatloads of bureaucratic paper work. These companies will have difficult times ahead. As we have seen, even large iconic companies that we thought would never be at risk have either failed, merged or have been purchased for pennies on the dollar. CEO’s have been terminated and boards have been replaced. The only good news is that smaller companies have flexibility and can change rapidly - if there is a market to pursue.

Governments, like large businesses can’t seem to turn the ship quickly, even with advanced warning. Property values are continuing to drop across the Country and Martin County is no exception to this fearful trend. Knowledgeable estimates indicate that the property values that yield the taxes to fund most local programs will again be down significantly by January 2009. Since that figure sets the base value for our 2010 property taxes this will translate into a further, and potentially greater, funding shortfall than what has already been experienced in the 2008 and 2009 budget cuts. Our young families and retirees are feeling the pressures of a receding economy. Business and institutions synonymous with Martin County’s economic strength are failing - and yet some continue to plan public budgets as if nothing is happening. We simply cannot continue to spend beyond our means either privately or publicly.

So what do we do now? We must change current government practices at all levels. This has to start with local government, the administration with the most impact on its citizens. We have to honestly look at our service delivery systems and answer hard questions with honest answers. We have to go back to basics. Our first suggestion is to cut taxes and reduce government spending. This could be extremely painful to those that have special needs, but it is required for preservation of our society. Private foundations must replace government bureaucracies to better serve those in true need. In short, the public’s levels of service expectations that drive expenditures must be reduced .

The old trick used by our local governments is to threaten to reduce public safety institutions, close parks, cut the number of lifeguards on the beach, and darken our libraries. It is time to call those threats into question. Can we reduce these type services and still provide the public with what it needs? Why can’t we return to part-time lifeguards? Why can’t the libraries be closed one or two days a week, maybe keeping the main branch open longer? Why can’t the public parks be rescheduled to provide service but reduce costs?

We think that local government, our County, Cities and School Board, could share facilities like maintenance, vehicle repair and decrease the number of County vehicles and equipment. We think that emergency response protocols should be reviewed and revised to reduce costs. We think governments have to look into public leases and the usage of public property and develop a more aggressive review of County and School construction contracts.

The cost of government is largely driven by personnel costs that account for as much as 94% of operating budgets. Unbiased professionals must be brought in to provide help and guidance when negotiating labor contracts and identifying the real long-term effect of the financial obligations assumed when funding employee retirements. How can it possibly take the same number of employees to run our local governments when there is no growth, no projects to review and very few buildings under construction to inspect?

The MCTA has for many years warned the county and city governments that the real estate boom would not continue and that when municipalities base their revenue on a cyclical industry there needs to be preparation for the inevitable downturn. To date a number of municipalities across the US have filed for bankruptcy as a result of poor planning or no planning. Our city and county governments must come to the conclusion that cutting costs is no longer up for debate, but an absolute necessity. And considering most of our county and city overhead is employee or benefit related that means cutting jobs and benefits.

Our local governments need to look seriously and honestly at privatization of public services such as the operation of the jail, parks maintenance, school transportation and food programs. Personnel costs, including long term retirement and benefits, must be brought under control. Administrators must be creative and have a clear vision for the future. Our elected officials must set policies, not try to run administration staff. The Martin County Taxpayers Association stands ready to contribute to those solutions.