New Haven Independent

Posted by: on whalley | November 9, 2007 8:36 AM

I think that just broke me. I don't feel anything any more.

Oh wait, yes I do. Intense burning rage. Yeah that's what it is. Numbingly intense.

Of course if I withhold my taxes in protest I get thrown in jail. Sometimes I don't know if this is America or some warlord run section of Sudan.

Once the BearCats start rolling through town I'll know exactly where I am.

Posted by: concernedtaxpayerinnewhaven | November 9, 2007 8:57 AM

A 22% raise. Give me a break. When this city government finds a way to cut my taxes by 22%, I will certainly be willing to support a raise. But never at 22%.

Please folks, join me in opposing this travesty. Obviously, the rubber stamp Board of Aldermen will approve this, or something close to it. Isn't there something we can do as taxpayers, some sort of referedum or something. HELP!!!!!

Posted by: evst1 | November 9, 2007 9:18 AM

Let's make a deal...reduce our taxes, end the corruption and cronyism at City Hall and he can have his raise. He's done nothing to deserve it otherwise.

Posted by: Hiscoolness | November 9, 2007 10:14 AM

Mayor thinks it's time for 1st pay raise in 4 years​
By Angela Carter , Register Staff

NEW HAVEN - Mayor John DeStefano Jr. Thursday submitted a request to the Board of Aldermen for a $25,000 pay raise.

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DeStefano won re-election to an eighth term Tuesday. His last raise was in 2003, when his salary increased by $5,000 to the current $115,000. If approved by the aldermen, the mayor's earnings will jump to $140,000.

Also submitted was a request to raise the salary of the city clerk from $42,167 to $55,000. Ron Smith was re-elected as city clerk Tuesday.

According to the city charter, the mayor must submit recommendations for raises in the positions of mayor and city clerk to the Board of Aldermen. The board must approve an amount by ordinance amendment before Jan. 1.

DeStefano withdrew a request for a salary increase in 2005, when he was seeking the Democratic endorsement for the 2006 governor's race. He said through a spokesman at that time that he backed away from a raise for budgetary reasons. Taxes went up by 3 mills that year.

His current spokeswoman, Jessica Mayorga, said the mayor's request takes into account that his salary has remained the same for four years, his hard work and dedication to the city and comparisons to the earnings of chief elected officials in other municipalities.

"He's very much a full-time mayor," she said.

The aldermen have the latitude to approve more or less than what DeStefano is seeking. The submission went to the board Thursday from Human Resources Director Tina Burgette.

Aldermanic President Carl Goldfield, D-29, of Beaver Hills said he had not had a chance to read over the details of the request, but planned to refer it to the Finance Committee for review.

"He hasn't had a raise in four years. He does a good job. It's reasonable he should get a raise," Goldfield said.

Finance Committee Chairman Sergio Rodriguez, D-26, of Westville also said he had not seen the documents yet.

Posted by: concrenedwestvilleres | November 9, 2007 10:49 AM

The mayor wants a raise that will make him the highest paid mayor of a large city in the state. Hartford and Bridgeport mayors make about $120K-$125K. Both cities are larger and have the same problems. Our mayor wants to make $140,000? I have an idea- raise the salary of the mayor but it won't be effective until he leaves office-- that way he won't get any benefit from it.

As for deserving a raise, let's see what has happened the past few years: Crime is spiking, taxes are rising, services are declining, the city is giving away land for $1, the coliseum is gone and now we have a giant parking lot, the Saturday Summer Concerts were scaled back, his siding with the union at YNHH allowed the city to get a national black eye, his supporters go and practically force the mentally disabled to go vote for him and his cronies, he neglected the city while running a futile campaign for governor, he gets jobs for aldermen so they will support his bidding, he spent $300,000 on bus shelters (which are nice, but $300,000 for a shelter?), he worked a deal so that seniors can defer property taxes while the rest of us pick up the difference, he instituted a public financing campaign that basically stifles his competetition. Yes, he deserves a raise just as the captain of the Titanic would deserve to pilot another ship.

Everyone needs to write to their aldermen and let them know that you are against this! If we don't make our voice heard, it will pass without question. Let them know that you will target them for defeat if they go along with this outrageous request.

Posted by: Hiscoolness | November 9, 2007 10:56 AM

The rumble in my gut is not what you might think -- it is just the sound of more such announcements to come, now that the elections are over. This is dishonest and underhanded. If, as Alderman Goldfield says "He hasn't had a raise in four years. He does a good job. It's reasonable he should get a raise," then why was this announcement made the day AFTER the elections? How much of a dent in the Mayor's victory would such an announcement have made before the elections? Perhaps not much, but the Mayor is not a risk taker!!

Under General Accounting Standards Board (GASB) regulations New Haven is required to report it's retiree health care liabilities by the end of 2007. Can we expect some horrendous number to be announced in this post-election period and before the season of good cheer? Can we place wagers on the number that will be announced? $100 million? Above $200 million? It costs the City over $8,000 per person per year for health care insurance at today's prices, which are inflating at around 10% a year.

And does anyone really understand our pension liabilities?? The net present deficit, a measure of how much moola is needed to guarantee the benefits promised by contract, is in excess of $300 million. The entire tax take of the City is under $200 million a year.

It is a good thing -- for our elected officials --that our elected representatives are not legally liable for actions that cause the voters financial harm. The only remedy is at the polls and the electoral process is subverted when critical information essential to making informed choices is withheld and sprung on us after we have voted.

I have asked my boss for a raise so I can fly to Vegas to make enough to to set up a fund to pay whatever tax extractions are coming down the pike. And to be as far away as possible when the news breaks -- my gut is now growling, I must go
.

Hiscoolness or is it Mycoolness

Posted by: New Haven Worker | November 9, 2007 10:56 AM

During the recent mayoral race, I received three different glossy fliers from the DeStefaNO campaign, a waste of paper and money considering the Mayor had little opposition. But when has the Mayor missed an opportunity to promote himself? In one flier, the Mayor lamented that most New Haveners cannot afford private school. He went on to describe his raison d'etre: Our public schools should be better places for the children of the poor and working classes to learn. While I believe our schools are in desperate need of improvement, I question the Mayor's use of the working poor as a stepping stone to his eighth term. And now he wants a raise, the amount of which exceeds what many New Haven families live on for an entire year. He thinks he is a do-gooder helping those in need. In reality, he is a part of the problem. He relies on poverty to ensure his own job. He uses people's needs to claim that he improves their lives. The problems of our city are connected to a class struggle. A mayor that has the nerve to ask for a raise in economic times like these spits in the face of those people who work hard every day to survive.

Posted by: Hiscoolness | November 9, 2007 10:57 AM

The rumble in my gut is not what you might think -- it is just the sound of more such announcements to come, now that the elections are over. This is dishonest and underhanded. If, as Alderman Goldfield says "He hasn't had a raise in four years. He does a good job. It's reasonable he should get a raise," then why was this announcement made the day AFTER the elections? How much of a dent in the Mayor's victory would such an announcement have made before the elections? Perhaps not much, but the Mayor is not a risk taker!!

Under General Accounting Standards Board (GASB) regulations New Haven is required to report it's retiree health care liabilities by the end of 2007. Can we expect some horrendous number to be announced in this post-election period and before the season of good cheer? Can we place wagers on the number that will be announced? $100 million? Above $200 million? It costs the City over $8,000 per person per year for health care insurance at today's prices, which are inflating at around 10% a year.

And does anyone really understand our pension liabilities?? The net present deficit, a measure of how much moola is needed to guarantee the benefits promised by contract, is in excess of $300 million. The entire tax take of the City is under $200 million a year.

It is a good thing -- for our elected officials --that our elected representatives are not legally liable for actions that cause the voters financial harm. The only remedy is at the polls and the electoral process is subverted when critical information essential to making informed choices is withheld and sprung on us after we have voted.

I have asked my boss for a raise so I can fly to Vegas to make enough to to set up a fund to pay whatever tax extractions are coming down the pike. And to be as far away as possible when the news breaks -- my gut is now growling, I must go
.

Hiscoolness or is it Mycoolness

Posted by: James | November 9, 2007 11:19 AM

OK, hold on a second folks. Let's crunch the numbers before we freak out. Yes, John's raise is a 17.8 percent raise. Seems high, but consider that we're amortizing this over four years (the last time he has had a raise). Most of us have, or at least have the chance at a salary adjustment every year. Typically people get at least the going rate of inflation, let's be generous and say 3.0 percent per year. John's raise of $25,000 is an average annual raise of 5.0 percent per year. It's nice, but not astounding. Given how you feel about the city, he's either done an poor or a good job. In my opinion it's a bit too much, but it's not outrageous.

Now let's look at Ron Smith's raise. Let's assume that he has also not received a raise in four years. His raise of 23.3 percent comes to an average annual percent increase of approximately 6.8 percent. If we assume that he has received a raise more recently than that, say two years ago, it's an average annual increase of 14.2 percent. Either way, Mr. Smith's raise is either aggressive or outright absurd. Especially given that Ron's position is essentially clerical and requires no special talent.

So rather than piss and moan in a forum where you already know most people agree with you, send a letter or make a phone call to your alder. Send and email to your friends with contact information to their alder. Let them know how we feel about this.

I'll start the ball rolling by writing to Moti Sandman.

Moti Sandman
Email - ward28@snet.net
Voicemail - 203-772-1805
Snail Mail - 195 Colony Road, New Haven, CT 06511

For the record, eveybody should get a cost of living adjustment. There's no reason why anyone's salary should decrease. But anything over inflation should be based on performance. What is the justification for the Mayor's raise? In the last four years, what is our record re: crime, education, community and economic development? That's not rhetorical. What are the numbers, and do they justify a generous raise?

As for Ron Smith, how has he performed above and beyond the expectations of his duties to warrant such a significant raise? Did he file documents really REALLY well last year? As taxpayers, we are owed a justification of these raises before we acquiesce.

Write your alders. Get your friends to write your alders. If you don't knwo who your alder is, look here; http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/Aldermen/index.asp

Posted by: Gary Doyens | November 9, 2007 12:12 PM

As usual, the laugh's on us, the taxpayers, and as usual, the arrogance is breathtaking. Mayor DeStefano thinks he's worth a 22% pay raise and wants to be highest paid mayor in the state. The mayor should have run on that platform and told the public he was going to screw us the same week he waltzes through an election where his thugs are dragging disabled people out of their apartments to vote for him because he has so sapped the residents' interest only 10% of them bother to vote. I thought the mayor was concerned over a projected $14 million deficit next year. Oops...guess not.

And by the way, don't let the town clerk, Ron Clark, a part timer off the hook either. He thinks he's worth a 30% pay raise to $55K. That's much more as a part timer, than most people in New Haven earn in a year as a full time employee.

I suggest everyone go to the city's award winning website: www.cityofnewhaven.com and find the address and phone number of your alder. Call them endlessly - and if necessary, picket their homes. Do the same for the mayor and Ron Clark.

In my ward, the 26th - you can kill two birds with one stone - Sergio and DeStefano live next door to each other.

Posted by: Common Sense | November 9, 2007 12:44 PM

It looks like the mayor is attempting to pad his city pension benefit that he will be entitled to at some point. Unfunded liability of all the city pensions is growing. Its time to put a check on all the pension formulas and put a halt to the buying of pensions with unused sick days, etc.

Posted by: WEBbloger 1 | November 9, 2007 12:57 PM

Carl Goldfield says:
" He hasn't had a raise in four years. He does a good job. It's reasonable he should get a raise".

Let us examine this statement more closely in order to determine its vality.

For three of the past four years the Mayor spent more than 90% of his time campaigning for governor, while being paid at the rate of $115,000. He lost the election by 312,242 votes, the largest democratic lost in Connecticut history. At the same time he ran up a campaign deficit of over $400,000 which must be paid. During the current year we have witnessed police corruption at a scale never seen before in Connecticut.
We have witnessed a 30M increase in the general fund budget, in addition to $57M or 12.27% increase in the debt for 07/08 alone. The Mayor contends that the entire budget is made up of 88% total personnel cost. He shows not misgivens about increasing that number.

In august this year the BOA approved without debate, raises for the executive management staff to be capped at $125,000. Goldfield argues that the Mayor should make more that the executives.

Considering this total analysis it is painfully difficult to understand how Goldfield could conclude, " it is reasonable he should get a raise".
The Mayor has given raises of 3.5 to 5.0% to city union employees for 07/08. However, no city employee is deserving of a $6,250/or 22%/yr.increase for such a questionable job performance.
The Mayor has recently submitted an expenditure control program to the Finance committee, with a goal to achieve 1-1.9M in savings mainly in the area of personnel, benefits and overtimes cost.
This hardly seems like an earnest effort to control cost, while at the same time increasing one's salary to $140.000.

I think the Finance committee and the BOA needs to look at this request with a more critical eye than the "golden eye" that Goldfield is using.

Posted by: stop bitching | November 9, 2007 1:57 PM

Your all dumber then rocks a $25k raise is less then a 3% percent raise (every year) over the last 5 years. Anyone with a real job gets at least that much of a raise every year just for cost of living. Stop crying about every little thing. The simple fact is new haven gets better and better every year.

Posted by: Gary Doyens | November 9, 2007 3:27 PM

Stop Bitching: Where did you go to school? Let's review: Last $5,000 raise was in 2003. The first year, DeStefano didn't get a raise, according to this article was in 2004, then 05, 06 and 07. He wants one in FY 2008. What he's demanding is to retroactively go back and get those raises from past years - and that doesn't equate to 3%. That's an average of 4.34% per year if you want to look at it that way. I don't.

The mayor said then we were in fiscal crisis and he was willing to share the pain. He didn't wax poetic and say share the pain until I need to pad my pension for my three highest paying years as I near the end of my city time. We are still in a fiscal crisis in case you haven't bothered to look around. He's projecting a $14 million deficit next year despite ramping up propety taxes to eye level and pumping another $30 million into the budget this year.

Seeking this size pay raise for himself and for Ron Clark is a disgrace.

Posted by: James | November 9, 2007 5:15 PM

@ STOP BITCHING

Check you math, homes. And I think that your statement that New Haven "gets better and better every year" may be disputed by some. Like those folks that got shot, had their property taxes raised by 100%, had city services cut, etc. In fact, please tell me what got better over the last two years for which the mayor is personally responsible.

Posted by: Gary Doyens | November 9, 2007 6:33 PM

Stop Bitching: You need an English lesson too.

Here's your post: Your (You're which is a contraction for You are) all dumber then rocks(insert period here - it's the end of a sentence.) a ("A" should be capitalized - it's the beginning of a sentence) $25k raise is less then (correct word is "than" as in less than) a 3% percent raise (every year) over the last 5 years. (I won't point out your math issues again but you're just wrong.) Anyone with a real job gets at least that much of a raise every year just for cost of living. (Fact error - there are plenty of people who get less than that - Cost of Living is tied to inflation - inflation is less than 3% and has been for some time) Stop crying about every little thing. The simple fact is new haven (capitalize New Haven - it's a proper name) gets better and better every year.

Posted by: Chris Gray | November 10, 2007 3:52 AM

I'm too tired to even discuss this one, but I have to say that I am upset at the so-called Music Festival replacing the Jazz Festival, one idea DiLieto stole from the community of which I always heartily approved. It was at one that he gave me the first of many, many "Hiya, hiya"s as he nearly stepped on me.

Still, I opposed pay raises similarly requested by him after election-day and I'm sure I am opposing this one.

They used to say they were competing for talent with the private sector. Highly paid CEOs get fired. Some bankrupt the companies. Others keep raping them. Mayors don't, or do they? I suppose it is up to who is in charge of the justice department and how the Mayor is connected.

Posted by: Ralph Ferrucci | November 10, 2007 11:59 AM

To Stopbitching:

Yes, anyone with a real job gets a 3% increase for cost of living.

The Mayor has not received an increase in 4 years. That would put his pay increase at 12%, not the proposed 22%.

That is with a review of job performance.

So lets reveiw his job performance for the last 4 years.

He has raised taxes.
Crime is on the rise.
He spent 3 years off running for Governor making a paycheck while his staff ran New Haven.
4 Years agop he asked for concessions from the Municipal Employees Union then raised the wages of the Department Heads.

I say we give him a raise of 1% a year for his poor performance. That would be 4% or $4600 making his annual salary $119,600.00.

When you get a raise you are not gauranteed the 3% but rather given as much as 3% by performance.You earn your raise.

He has not earned a wage of $140,000. Hopefully the Alders will give him only what he has earned by his performance over the last 4 years.
Ralph Ferrucci

Posted by: charlie | November 10, 2007 2:34 PM

The request for a raise is absurd. DeStefano should get a small raise, maybe to $120K, but $140K is patently ridiculous. The Town Clerk should not be making $55K, no matter what planet he is from. That position should be capped at $45K with a 2-3% (inflation) annual increase.

Posted by: Josh Jones | November 11, 2007 1:33 PM

Make it $250000. In 2009 will get someone good.

Posted by: James | November 11, 2007 4:30 PM

Agreed, Charlie. And I wish people would be a little more concerned with the less sensational but far more absurd raise for the town paper jockey, Ron Smith. He's a political crony of DeStefano who has no business in a position of public trust. He pulls some votes in for Johnboy and is rewarded with an undeserved raise. OF 6.8 PERCENT PER YEAR. Again, assuming 4 years without a raise. That's a HUGE raise and not one that I feel like paying for. This is nothign but political back scratching.

In the same way that I must sit down with my managers at the end of the year and justify why I do or do not deserve a raise and how large or small it will be, the Mayor and Smith should be justifying this request to the public.

Posted by: concernedtaxpayerinnewhaven | November 12, 2007 8:52 AM

Stop Bitching:

I'm willing to bet better than even money that you are or anyone else supporting this travesty are: 1) A city employee, contractor, or other PAID flunky; and 2) You do not live in, own a home or motor vehicle in the city of New Haven.

Prove me wrong!!!!