FOSTER’S BUDGET VETO KILLS DEAL WITH FIREFIGHTERS TO FORFEIT RAISES AND PREVENT STATION CLOSURES
By LBReport.com
Long Beach Firefighters Association president Rich Brandt and members of the group’s leadership on Tuesday night told the Long Beach City Council that Mayor Bob Foster’s veto of roughly $330,000 in Fire Department spending killed a deal in which firefighters had narrowly voted to give up roughly $2.4 million in raises to prevent rotating fire station closures and loss of an ambulance.
Speaking at a specially scheduled council meeting—where council members Rae Gabelich, Gerrie Schipske, Patrick O’Donnell and Steve Neal had agendized an item to discuss the impacts of the mayor’s veto—Brandt and several members of the group’s board of directors said from the council podium that the mayor and city council would be responsible for the public safety consequences of the veto.
“I’m going to tell you what’s going to happen on Friday, and it’s not the responsibility of the Firefighters Association. It’s now back on the mayor and council. When that little boy dies because of a brownout, it’s your fault, not ours,” Brandt said. “On top of Engine 1/101 being missing and Engine 14 missing, Engine 9′s closed on Friday. Engine 17 is closed on Saturday and so on down the line. Every day in one of your council districts there’s an extra engine missing.”
Foster replied, “I understand you’re emotional… Everybody who advocates cloaks it in those kinds of terms. I understand that, and you’d still have to manage to $2.3 [million] not $2.7 [million]. We’re gonna have a conversation. Thank you. Next please.”
Brandt was followed by Long Beach Fire Department director Matthew Bolen, who urged council members to override the mayor’s veto/reductions in budget.
“If this veto is enacted, the cuts that follow in the fire department and other departments in this city—that will inevitably make it a more dangerous community in which to live, work and recreate—will be on each of you,” Bolen said.
To hear this exchange (and follow-up) in full, click here.
In addition, LBReport.com includes below additional on-demand audio of extended portions of what took place during discussion of the item at the specially called Sept. 28 council meeting.
[The special meeting was initially scheduled to discuss an appeal to the Port of Long Beach’s environmental impact report on the rebuild of the Desmond bridge; Gabelich, Schipske, O’Donell and Neal added an item discussing Foster’s veto/reductions).
The mayor’s Sept. 19 veto called for a 1 percent reduction in General Fund spending overall, but a .5 percent reduction in overtime; the latter sum equates to cutting about $330,000 from the fire department budget. Brandt said Foster’s veto effectively changed the sum needed to prevent rolling brownouts and losing an ambulance from roughly $2.4 million to $2.7 million … and said the Mayor’s action had changed and effectively killed the deal.
