Budget/Fiscal

by Matt Williams –

Let me start by saying that the opinions and perspectives presented in this article are those of the author and not the opinions and perspectives of the Water Advisory Committee (“WAC”).

City Shrugs Off PERB Setback and Keeps Going to Fiscal Solvency –

The city suffered an expected but momentary setback when it learned, on Tuesday afternoon, that the Public Employees Relations Board had denied their appeal and made the Administrative Law Judge’s ruling from November 2011 its own, finding that “the City violated the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act by implementing its last, best and final offer without exhausting impasse resolution procedures set forth in the City’s applicable local rules.”

One thing was par for the course on Tuesday night, in that the budget discussion did not begin until nearly midnight, but it was a short and quick discussion, with the real discussion and work coming at the next meeting.

By Steve Pinkerton

As the City has faced tough economic times, the last four years have been a time of transition and restructuring. As the City faces a new era, the question has become “How can service model deliveries be improved to maintain the high level of service expected by the citizens, while staying within stagnant revenues and increased employment costs?”

Since budget year 2009/2010, the City has tried to reduce positions by attrition in order to avoid laying off employees. The City’s work force has dropped from 445 full time equivalents to 376 full time equivalents over the last four years, a 15.5% overall staff reduction.

In a very stacked agenda, one of the critical issues that the council is scheduled to take up are the options for putting a ballot measure on the November 2012 ballot.

The day after the election, the city laid down the first gauntlet in what has been described by both sides as increasingly contentious discussion on new labor contracts across the board.

The layoffs involve nine positions within DCEA (Davis City Employee’s Association), the bargaining unit that the city originally declared impasse on in the winter of 2010 but had that impasse overturned by a state board (PERB) last November.

Our Sunday Commentary this past weekend focused on an op-ed written by the chamber in which they talk about the necessity of a balanced approach.

As several people noted, the PAC positions that we quoted suggest that we need both economic development and budget cuts.

All one has to do to realize that times have changed is look at the hire of Scott Kenley as the new interim fire chief.  Mr. Kenley is immensely qualified with forty years in fire service, and many of those in the chief position.

But it is what Chief Kenley has done since retirement that sets him apart.  He has worked extensively in labor negotiations, including doing contract work with Davis’ own hired negotiator, and all of that work has been on the side of management.

Late on Tuesday, the City of Davis confirmed that they had hired a new interim fire chief, replacing Bill Weisgerber.  Scott Kenley was hired as the new interim fire chief, the second interim chief since the retirement of Rose Conroy in March 2010.

“Interim Chief Kenley has been active in fire services for over forty years and brings with him a diversity of experience ranging from firefighter operations to fire chief,” a city release stated.

Uncovered Portions Show Union President Bobby Weist Received SIGNIFICANT Preferential Treatment in Promotion to Captain

In newly-released segments of a 2008 report, the Vanguard has learned that Bobby Weist, the long-time union president and arguably one of the most powerful public figures in city government, received preferential treatment in his 2007 promotion to fire captain.

In April of 2007, then Chief Rose Conroy of the Davis Fire Department promoted Mr. Weist, over “at least one of the candidates [who] was demonstrably and significantly more qualified for and deserving of the promotion than [Bobby Weist] promoted by Chief Conroy.”