In the aftermath of Property Tax Amendment 1 local governments continue to posture and look for someone to blame – anyone other than the elected officials in charge for the last ten years. The biggest problem faced by Martin County is the unjustified salaries and benefits accumulated over many years, and the fact that efforts to address those costs head-on appear too painful for some of those same politicians.

When opposing the passage of Amendment 1, many governments cried poor, saying that their employees made less, on average, than similar private sector employees. Turns out this is not true, according to an analysis conducted by The Orlando Sentinel. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recorded a $38,000 average salary for Florida business workers in 2006, and $41,000 for the state’s local government workers – numbers that don’t include benefits, which equal about one-third higher for government workers nationally. Locally we believe the disparity is at least that great and continues to increase as the private sector, especially the building trades, has contracted over the last two years.

The Sentinel’s analysis found that Florida’s local governments raised salaries an average of 6 percent in 2004, 3.2 percent in 2005 and 3.3 percent in 2006. Martin County would be comparatively well off if the salaries of our public sector employees had gone up by only those amounts. The income of most Martin County employees increased by nearly double the Florida average. The Fire/EMS Service led the way with across the board salary increases that result in salaries more than double what they were in FY2000, plus additional benefits, large overtime payments - and another 10% increase due in October 2008.

The uncertainty 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. The solution: By the conclusion of the February 29 th “Budget Workshop” County Administration should leave with clear guidance on where to trim, and the authority to do so without continued political “supervision”. As with most events in life, fear of what might happen is almost always worse than the result.

Public companies, small companies and even families must cut expenses as their income decreases. They must answer to stockholders, customers, employees or other members of their household. For governments, voters are the ultimate authority. As the Sentinel’s editorial board notes, passage of Amendment 1 not only lowered property taxes. It was also a clear message from voters that enough is enough. Hopefully our elected officials “get it”.

As local governments continue to look for additional money in user fees and other sources not subject to Amendment 1, accountability becomes a major issue. For example, we now hear that the new County aquatic center may not happen due to lack of funds. Much of the support required to pass the ½ cent sales tax increase in 2006 was generated by publicity on the need for such a facility. The cost was also partially offset by the already scheduled shutdown of the old, hard to maintain pool at Martin County High. If this talk is more than a scare tactic, the County needs to identify where the monies already generated have gone, and what items have a higher priority than the aquatic center.

Our congratulations to the School Board and Superintendent for an excellent February 19 th workshop on the benefits and cost of televising their proceedings on MCTV channel 20. At the end of the meeting it appeared that all obstacles to providing videotaped coverage had been overcome, pending a Board vote and a finalized agreement with the County. We hope such an agreement can quickly evolve and be approved.

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Please join us at our 2008 Annual Dinner Meeting scheduled on Wednesday, March 26 at the Lost Lake Golf Club in Hobe Sound. Congressman, Tim Mahoney, will serve as our keynote speaker. Seating is limited and reservations are required. Please visit our website, mctaxpayers.org, to download an invitation.