Y’town police contract reflects fiscal realities

The binding three-year contract between the city of Youngstown and police patrol officers formulated by a state conciliator is significant for two reasons:

First, the 1 percent pay increase and a $150 lump-sum payment are very much in keeping with what has been going on in the private sector, where salaries have been stagnant for the past eight years.

Second, conciliator Robert G. Stein of Kent offers an honestly brutal appraisal of Youngstown’s financial condition.

It’s an appraisal that we have long talked about – given the myriad problems confronting the old, urban community.

Here’s what Stein had to say in rejecting a proposal from the Youngstown chapter of the Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association:

“[Youngstown’s] finances are sobering. The city, according to evidence, has serious structural economic difficulties impacting both the expenditure and revenue side of the ledger, causing expenditures to exceed revenue.”

Stein went on to say that reversing the downward economic trend would take some time. He then offered this very poignant note of caution:

“ … but in the interim, prudent is the watchword.”

Stein’s observations about Youngstown’s finances mirror those of another outsider who was brought in to resolve the labor-contract impasse between the city and the police union.

In January, Dennis M. Byrne, a fact-finder from Munroe Falls, rejected the union’s demand for 3 percent annual raises in the three-year contract, and explained why in his report:

“ … the evidence in the record shows that the city of Youngstown faces severe financial problems. There is little prospect of a significant increase in revenues, which means that the city must find ways to curtail expenditures or it will face a situation where it must institute layoffs.”

AVOIDING LAYOFFS

When two independent, out-of-town experts in contract negotiations come to the same conclusion about Youngstown’s imploding operating budget, the need for the keepers of the public purse to make tough decisions is as clear as the red ink in the ledger.

The litany of challenges confronting the city has been recited in this space many times over the past several years. Indeed, in responding to fact-finder Byrne’s report, we warned that the next couple of years will be marked by a fiscal implosion the likes of which have not been seen since the collapse of the steel industry in the 1970s.

There is only one way of dealing with such an implosion: reduce labor costs. In other words, slash spending.

Youngstown’s tax base has been shrinking for some time, the population is declining, neighborhoods are deteriorating, and the percentage of residents not paying income tax continues to rise.

The idea that Youngstown can grow its economy in the near future is wishful thinking, at best.

Companies in the Mahoning Valley have had to deal with the effects of the Great Recession – it began in December 2007 and lasted until June 2009 – by cutting payrolls, freezing salaries and even demanding concessions. Local governments, on the other hand, have weathered the national economic storm largely unscathed.

Given that tax dollars are the main source of revenue for the public sector, prudent governance is demanded.

Every time public employees get a pay raise, workers in the private sector react with incredulity. And, they make their displeasure known at the ballot box. It’s no accident that tax issues are being rejected in larger numbers.

The binding contract between the city of Youngstown and the patrol officers isn’t about disrespecting law enforcement or not recognizing the important work they do.

It is about reality. Older urban cities like Youngstown are being forced to adopt new ways of operating in order to provide for the health, safety and welfare of their residents.

When the state slashed funding for local governments, Gov. John Kasich made it clear that he wanted decision-makers to do more with less. Kasich has long advocated consolidation of services and other cost-cutting measures, such as purchasing of goods in partnership with other governments.

The city of Youngstown is faced with this crucial question: How do you manage an operating budget that is bleeding red ink? The answer: very carefully.