AS I HAVE BEEN SAYING SO LET'S TAKE A LOOK

$4.2 Million City Deficit Likely To Be Balanced With Reserves

August 22, 2016

By Journal Staff

For years I have been shouting that the city is not in the rosy financial picture the MAYOR tried to pedal. You can only kick the can so far down the road until you run out of pavement. And remember they don't call it a DEAD end for nothing. JUDY'S re-election may have to be run as a ressurection.

One of her main bragging themes has been lower taxes, although I have heard some property owners vigorously argue that point. I don't know, not only am I not a lawyer, I'm not a CPA either. There is always the old argument taxes don't have to be raised to make you pay more. The rate can stay the same and when the property values go up correspondingly so do your taxes. But when your property values go up it's not like you suddenly find you've got more rooms to sleep in say like more channels to watch in your cable package, no you pay more to sleep in the rooms you already got. The end result is more money in the city coffers, enough to almost double yours and the city council's salary. All the while JUDY got to portray herself as the thrifty one. Well I do have to say the wardrobe has improved or maybe retro-bag lady is no longer chic.

Okay so here we go ....

 city’s FY 2017 budget, which just began on July 1, is already projected to be $4.2 million in deficit, without additional appropriation or budget cuts.

Now remind you this year has JUST started and we already deep in the hole. I do believe we have a couple of big union contracts to negotiate. Now some at city hall may try and tell you that it won't really affect this year's defecit, you just remember that can analogy. These people helped put her in office and the bill has come due. Laying off people is not only a threat to public safety but a threat to re-election.

Suddenly increasing taxes is on the table.

Caron also noted that there may be other options, such as adoption of the local option meals tax 

This is the only viable option that CARON presented. Perhaps he was partaking as he presented the possibility of a revenue provided by the sale of medical pot. Even if the council and the MAYOR can get on the same page about this problem, actual income is a couple years away.  We'll probably open up another DOLLAR store by then. All of that economic development don't pay this year's bills.

According to Caron, the deficit actually has little if anything to do with the recent police union contract that was signed earlier this month. Rather, the city’s projected deficits go back to the net school spending issue and the city’s need to reallocate resources to the school department to meet state spending thresholds for education

Sure blame the state, avoid taking responsibility at all costs. The state last year reduced by about half, the amount of NSS the city owed due to the MAYOR shortchanging the schools. Sure an urban district has some challenges that say a MARBLEHEAD doesn't but we are not that different than other urban districts and none of them have the magnitude of the problem LYNN does. Then again, they don't have JUDY as MAYOR.

The last couple of years JUDY has been selling the LPS budget by promising to add more for DR. LATHAM to play with in the middle of the year to close a possible anticipated gap in the current year's NSS. Makes you wonder how much FREE CASH we are going to have if we are supposedly going to spend it here, there, and everywhere.

Well remember we did just get $3.7 Million in CH. 70 money and I am curious as to how and where it will be spent. I'm sure it may be tempting to use some of it to fill that defecit but that will be very problematic. Remember what JAY SULLIVAN of the DESE said about it:

The city is still required to meet the Net School Spending requirement in order to be in compliance with Education Reform Act of 1993. The additional funds the city received also increased the Net School Spending requirement.

I hope we don't end up needing a FORENSIC AUDIT.

These latest financial struggles make you wonder about the wisdom of throwing away tax dollars to perpetuate the pipe dream of pushing to put Pickering in the pipeline. How are we going to build a $132 + Million school when we can't pay the bills we got.

Say what you want, JUDY is going to leave a legacy.