It has been reported to THE GUARDIAN some notes taken in Nampa Budgeting workshop via a confidential source in Nampa:
1. A 5% increase in revenue from property taxes has been "penciled in" for next year.
2. A number of proposals to save $200K by going with State Insurance System v. the current mode of self insurance for City of Nampa (vetoed by coppers and firemen see #7 below).
3. Nampa underwriting of their Wellness Progam will be eliminated along with cutting of medical benefits with the addition of a $200 deductible requirement. (vetoed by coppers and firemen see #7 below)
4. The IPT reported 4 new police cars v. the 17 new cars requested.
5. Nampa Urban Renewal Agency has been asked to fund $800K for a new DNA testing facility for Nampa Police Dept. (No mention of staffing and opertional costs v. this getting done by outside lab)
6. The new Nampa Public Safety Building has serious problems with water leaking into the basement and poses a threat to compromise evidence stored in the basement of this new $15 Million building.
7. The new budget efforts are being held hostage by the Coppers and Firemen..especially the firemen's union. There is a clause in their contract saying there could be no changes to the contract unless changes were mutually agreed to by the city as well as the firemen's union. This has effectively killed any changes in fringe benefits.
In summary, Nampa City Council was divided on the usual lines with White and Thorne arguing for more of everything and Henry and Kren proposing some serious cuts and reorganizations and Mayor Dale siding with White and Thorne and actually advocating even more of everything on top of what was pitched by White and Thorne.
More to come so stay tuned....
Paul
Looks like business as usual at Nampa city hall. The 2013 election for mayor and city council cannot come to soon. Any takers for the positions?
ReplyDeleteDale better quit playing so close to the railroad tracks. He might get hit by a train.
ReplyDeleteIt really is wearing thin that Police, Fire and other public sector unions are the tail wagging the dog. I am old enough to remember how President Reagan fired all of the nations Air Traffic Controllers. We got through that mess and those who chose to defy Mr. Reagan found themselves locked out! Public Safety Unions have commandeered taxpayers as well as the very goverment they work for. It is high time for a claw-back to reality. Reality for the median family income in this country is $45k/yr with a questionable level of benefits.
ReplyDeleteAnd less than 45k a yearis what most cops in Caldwell and at the county are making. But for some reason, Nampa pays very handsomely. Go figure.
DeleteIf city exchanges the pivot block for the new Nampa Public Safety building who gets to pay for fixing a leaky building and does the city even need an DNA facility?
ReplyDeleteThere are way too many newer Ford pick up trucks with City of Nampa stickers on them. There will never be enough money for Tom Dale and his two council henchmen to waste.
ReplyDeleteMaybe time for council to take a no confidence vote for the mayor who seems to just want more from the struggling small business and the taxpayers. Maybe the good citizens of Nampa should consider a recall election.
ReplyDeleteThe only recourse here is the ballot box and given the apathy of local voters toward local elections it is a pretty sure bet things will remain the same in Nampa and Caldwell.
DeleteRecall efforts are expensive, time consuming and most of the time they fail to remove people from elected office. I can't remember one successful recall effort excepth Gray Davis, the former Gov. of California before Arnold took the job.
I have been hearing some talk around the local restaurant grapevine that some of the cops in Nampa have been going to the "Blackwater" facility for some workshops and training. Are the taxpayers paying to train mercenaries now? Do the people that are part of this crazy new Nampa agenda think that they need a personal security force now to enforce their mandate on us? What in the world is going on here?
ReplyDeleteActually there used to be a non profit organization that was based in Couer D'Alene called "the Backup" that used to distribute free CD based training materials and help organize and sponsor other affordable training for Peace officers in the State of Idaho.
DeleteIn Fact about 18 of these CD's are still in use as a pre-requisite study before an officer starts his first day in the police academy in lieu of more class time which would cost taxpayers more money.
About two years ago, Blackwater comes along and basically buys out it's only competition in Idaho and closes them down. Blackwater does more than Military/Mercenary type training. Now they are using their substantial assets to force all competitors out of the Law Enforcement training fields so they will be the only ones left.
The cops aren't seeking mercenary training. Blackwater is trying to corner the market on law enforcement training across the nation.
Sorry, forgot to add a link to back up my claim about Blackwater.
DeleteHere it is in case you are interested.
http://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2007/10/26/blackwater-buys-training-company.aspx
Blackwater is basically a private army for hire business. So if Blackwater is buying up all of these other competitors, the idea of law enforcement training is moot. It sounds like to me that military type training has replaced law enforcement training. Thanks for your info, you have confirmed my suspicions.
DeleteNo, that isn't what I said. Blackwater is branching out into new markets and using their significant wealth to drive out any competition and corner the market in each of these areas. Basically they have become a Mega-Corporation and will soon be controlling all training for Police, Fire, EMS and anything else they can get their claws into. They see the Military and Local, State, and Federal Police and Emergency services as a giant cash cow funded by the taxpayer. Once they have dismantled all those pesky not for profit training centers where veteran experts pass their hard earned knowledge on to the next generation, they will have us by the privates. Imagine when all new recruits are pledging their allegiance to Blackwater, for the greater profit of the corporation and it's shareholders. Yes let's privatize the government, sounds wonderful doesn't it?
DeleteThe local restaurant grapevine here in Nampa has been hearing some goings on concerning the local National Guard and the local police. They have been doing some kind of combined training. We both have some good points here, and we are probably going to different sources to get it. What matters though is that we both believe that the power elite are doing something really creepy to get its control on the middle class. Scary, huh?
DeleteNo, that is just unsubstantiated rumor. The National Guard has not been doing any training with the police. That is a rumor started by conspiracy theorists, nothing more.
DeleteThe word around the restaurant grapevine now, is that the powers that be are getting thin skinned about the political dissent and truth that is being found out and revealed about them. Have to remember to be careful about naming no names and pointing no fingers.
ReplyDelete