Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/12/2012 09:03:51 PM PDT
Updated: 10/12/2012 09:23:03 PM PDT
UPLAND – Representatives of the city’s police officer and firefighter employee groups blame city leaders for the current financial crisis, saying they have failed to properly manage the city’s budget.
City Manager Stephen Dunn and Mayor Ray Musser had said Thursday that the city will need to cut spending aggressively in order to avoid a state of fiscal emergency and potentially filing for bankruptcy.
Cuts could include outsourcing police and fire services as well as reducing compensation or benefits for city employees.
Spokesmen for the city’s police and fire unions said public safety has already been cut too much and claimed city leaders are misspending public money.
“The city’s problems are based on financial errors,” said Marc Simpson, president of the Upland Police Officers Association.
Michael Carney, president of the Upland Fire Fighters Association, said running the city like a business is not working.
“It’s sad that the leaders of our city aren’t holding each other accountable in regard to the financial situation,” he said. “As an association or as individuals, when we spend our money we know where it’s going and what to prepare for.”
A memo written by Dunn and obtained by the Daily Bulletin shows that the city’s general fund reserve was $1.4 million at the end of the fiscal year that ended June 30 – $2.7 million below what the city had projected.
Simpson said in a statement that the police union is astonished at the city’s lack of financial accountability.
“It’s time for the council to make public safety a priority,” he said. “Cuts are no longer acceptable and will place the citizens and (the city’s) officers in undue peril.”
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Cue the bugles and the horses for the cavalry charge. Here comes Upland’s police and fire mafia to the rescue.
#1 You may be better off if you worry about your city and we will take care of ours. What vomit you spew. Mafia? Really?
GFY.
Of course the obscene fire and police salaries, benefits and pensions that they extorted from the city played NO role whatsoever in any city’s financial problems! Crooks, plain and simple along with the overpaid city staff and council members that went along with this obscene scheme to rape the taxpayers. These police and fire jobs, after all, are blue collar UNSKILLED positions requiring no higher education, no degree and no license. And the taxpayers are having to pay six figures for these people? Corruption at its finest. So police and fire keep your filthy mouths shut about any fiscal mismanagement. YOU caused it. Your financial day is coming. You have raped us long enough.
Upland voters blew it 12 years ago when they refused to pass Utility Tax that would of shored up all of Uplands finances. The leader against that measure was none other than Glen Bozar the “tax payer advocate” or should I say fool who is now running for City council lol. Police and Fire were greedy and Council lead down wrong path by blood sucking City Attorney whose advise NOT to settle on Colonies dispute is what will ultimately be our Fiscal Demise
I am usually not the type to post to comments, but I could not resist on this one. The fact that you #3 “Anonymous” could say that the positions that these men and women hold are UNSKILLED, is pure garbage. Speaking on behalf of the fire department, these individuals are highly educated. In order to even apply for a position , these individuals have to put themselves through a fire academy, an emergency medical technician course and fire science classes at a college level. These are BARE MINIMUM requirements. Fire departments, Upland Fire for example, require the previously stated plus a Paramedic License. The firefighters serve a dual role in Upland being Paramedics as well. People do not understand the intensity that goes into paramedic school, but it is very difficult. Paramedics are versed in every medical and traumatic emergency imaginable and they must be able to quickly come up with a differential diagnosis and treat appropriately at any time in a 24 hour period. This includes being woken up out of a dead sleep. Not an easy task! These men and women are also versed in rescue systems, swift water rescue systems, hazardous materials mitigation and fire prevention. Please do not minimize what these people do because it takes a great deal of knowledge and training to operate in a modern, all risk fire department.
Now speaking to the financial aspect. The fire and police departments both offered concessions that included pension reform, medical coverage reform and layoffs, but the city did not take it. Plus with AB340 going in to affect, pension reform is going to happen either way, so once this has been altered and public safety takes their inevitable cut, what then? Who will be to blame? The public safety unions are the scape goat for a much larger problem. Why doesn’t anyone bring up the banks giving home loans to people that could not afford it? Or people living outside of their means? Or cities concentrated on cutting versus creating jobs and a business friendly atmosphere? Public safety is not the problem!
The fire palace in the colonies could have been a bit less ostentatious and saved the city a few dollars. The police monolith on 14th St. could have also been scaled back. Neither were for whatever reasons. Had they been Upland’s coffers would now have at least a few more million dollars in them. The City of Grandiose Living.
Re #6, the PD is on 13th not 14th, and any money left for these fools would have been spent on an even bigger animal control building. Quincey and Pomierski’s decisions will haunt this city for decades.
Bf4269, you obviously are biased . Public safety is not the problem, public safety unions, bought and paid for politians,, and lazy voters are. Public safety unions keep padding local city councils with their candidates, candidates in return vote “yes” on their ridicules unfunded pensions, and voters blindly support candidates endorsed by police and fire departments thinking they will be safer. Voters don’t take the time to understand issues , and allow elections to be determined by bogus mailers!
NOTE to voters, don’t believe political mailers! The time to get involved in local government is BEFORE your city goes bankrupt .
Rancho business owner… I agree with that uninformed voters and “bought and paid for politicians” are a huge factor. The arguement seems one sided as if the public safety unions are the only ones contributing to campaign funds. This is far from the truth. CEOs and business owners contribute to campaign funds as well. I am all for stopping monetary contributions to political campaigns as long as NOBODY can contribute. This is a Prop 32 issue as well. Many think that by voting yes on 32, it will eliminate contributions to political campaigns across the board equally. False. It eliminates campaign funding by stopping contributions made through payroll deductions. It says nothing about contributions through profit margins, which is how businesses and corporations contribute… Again I agree with you Rancho business owner… the public should get more educated on the issues without relying on mailers. With that said, the hot topic is everything is failing financially due to public pensions. The public needs to get the entire picture.
BF again your bias shows, SEBA, and firefighter unions can and do out spend any local business owner. It’s rare a candidate can win an election without the support of public safety unions. Not only do unions give money, they give their valuable endorsement.. I understand they are just doing their job, but to blame others and pretend they are not part of the problem is in a word, wrong.
Antonucci!
Ray Musser accepted 15 to 20k CA$H from Pomierski’s saddlebags a few years ago and then started talking “campaign reform” to prevent newcomers from raising funds. But that’s just a tip of the old iceberg.
The best one is that Council Member Ken Willis and Musser were asking for money from Colonies Crossroads at the same time that the City of Upland (R. Turner) and SAWCo (R. Wellington) were providing incorrect information which resulted in Colonies Partners being forced to overbuild the basin. Why you might ask? So there would be more water to recharge and provide more water for SAWCo to sell. And enable Upland to drop the west spillway water project. Cha ching! No wonder old Council Member Ken Willis is fighting for his life to avoid testifying in the Flood Control Lawsuit. Willis and a few others should be bunkmates with Pomierski. Pathetic.
@ 7. Yes, it is, a simple typo on my part or maybe a brain freeze. Anyone who votes for someone because of a mailer or a sign clogging public or private property should be disenfranchised.
@ 12. Hopefully, you have more. Dropping said project would also mean more enterprise money for the council to steal…er…borrow.
Rancho business owner nailed it!!!!!
@4 let the city blindly pass tax increases under the table. GENIUS. Bozar fought the city on his own time, and the tax payers voted it down. How about the city doesn’t spend more than it takes in and be fiscally responsible instead.
Upland Fire Union should tread lightly. What department had the majority of spending in past five years? Didn’t hear them complaining then?
#3 THANK YOU, YOU ARE CORRECT PLAIN AND SIMPLE!