When I sat down at my computer this morning to check my email, I switched on the television. This is not something I ever do in the morning unless I hear about something earth-shattering on the radio when I wake-up and check the weather report, usually gray skies with gray clouds, gloom and a chance of rain. What's new.
So, on the Today Show I see some guys singing and dancing outside of the studio and think, "A revival of 'How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying'?" Well, I guess it is. When they come back for the news, they start in on six dollar a gallon gasoline and no one traveling this summer and I flip off the TV. I do not need this early in the morning.
So I read my email and there is my morning legislative update from the State. I find that several new bills have been introduced including one that would cap local contributions to health care for employees.
Seems like the State is spending a lot of time telling locals what they should do. Why do we not just let the State of Michigan run all the local governments and abolish the municipalities? How is that for consolidation? No more union negotiations for benefits. Big brother will just decide. And the State can then forget about revenue sharing cause they will get to keep all of it.
Here is a State that has done a stellar job of running itself for many years. A State that has never put one dollar aside to fund retiree health care and now talks of the huge obligation, which didn't just happen overnight.
I, along with a few other folks from the MGFOA, wrote Public Act 149 of 1999 which allows any government unit to pre-fund this obligation and invest the money as they would a pension plan. West Bloomfield started setting money aside in 1988. And so did Oakland County. And the State? Nope.
My point of ranting is that the State government is out of control. Yes, we have some local units that are in bad shape due to a combination of poor leadership, or entire lack of same, and declining revenues, over which they have little control. And the shifting of school taxes to the state level under Proposal A has been a disaster in my opinion. Are those school districts who were underfunded any better off now than they were in 1992?
Are there too many local units of government? Yes. Are there too many school districts? Yes. So why not introduce legislation to deal with these issues instead of telling them how to run their business? You, the State, are not a very good example of decision making.
I know that my opinions are shared by others. I hear it everyday in the community and from businesses I deal with. As the old saying goes, 'People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones'. Get your act together and set an example of good policies. Then consolidate the locals and have them follow your lead. If locals are to have no power in decision making, then why have them at all?
Showing posts with label government. Show all posts
Showing posts with label government. Show all posts
Everyone Needs to Laugh
Laughing relieves stress. And with all my back problems the last several weeks, I need all the relief I can get. So, just back from another doctor's appointment, I sat down to read the online Detroit News. Right there on the front page is the statement: 'Monica Conyers wants to serve rest of prison sentence at home'.
I was laughing even before I read the article. What part of 'prison' doesn't she understand? And this woman earned a law degree?
Anyway, if you want a chuckle for the day, read the mlive.com commentary. For added chuckles, read the comments.
Hey, it's good for your health!
I was laughing even before I read the article. What part of 'prison' doesn't she understand? And this woman earned a law degree?
Anyway, if you want a chuckle for the day, read the mlive.com commentary. For added chuckles, read the comments.
Hey, it's good for your health!
It's called Training, not Travel
………the education and training variable is the most significant predictor of an organization's success as compared to price-to-earning ratios, price-to-book statistics, and measures of risk and volatility. Laurie Bassi, McBassi & Company
There was an article in the paper this week regarding the agenda for a Royal Oak City Council meeting. On the agenda was the question of funding education for employees. The proposal was to limit training to only those sessions necessary for someone to maintain a required certification or license.
The issue of training was one that came up often when I was on the Board in West Bloomfield. The Board had discontinued any out of state travel for education. Another proposal was to limit the distance someone could travel to get to a conference or training. Comments were made by trustees that employees were going on 'junkets' with taxpayer monies.
Many finance professionals are not required to have up-to-date certifications or licenses. CPAs, if they are not practicing where their license is required, can put it in escrow. Township Treasurers have absolutely no requirements to do their job, other than qualifying for a bond to collect taxes.
My CGFM designation was a result of my desire to keep myself current on financial matters. My interest in the profession is what kept me involved in state and national committees. Without on-going training I would never have performed at the level I did while in office. I would have had to constantly rely on an audit firm to make sure I was fulfilling the basic requirements. I went to as much training as I could and I adopted each advanced pronouncement by the Government Accounting Standards Board if it affected my office. I tried to stay ahead of my peers.
Everyone who reads the paper and gets upset about the financial condition of their local unit should look at the people working in the finance and treasury departments. Are they trained and current on 'Best Practices?' Can they effectively discuss all aspects of their job or are they just putting numbers in columns with little idea of the big picture?
Training and education are extremely important. And sometimes that training is best found out-of-state. Spend now and train or suffer the consequences later.
The perception among many senior leaders that training isn't "mission-critical" is often the reason why the training budget is the first on the chopping block when companies look to reduce expenses. But as previous American Society of Training & Development and i4cp studies have shown, cutting the training budget is a practice most associated with low-performing organizations; high performers generally keep it intact. Kevin Oakes, CEO i4cp
There was an article in the paper this week regarding the agenda for a Royal Oak City Council meeting. On the agenda was the question of funding education for employees. The proposal was to limit training to only those sessions necessary for someone to maintain a required certification or license.
The issue of training was one that came up often when I was on the Board in West Bloomfield. The Board had discontinued any out of state travel for education. Another proposal was to limit the distance someone could travel to get to a conference or training. Comments were made by trustees that employees were going on 'junkets' with taxpayer monies.
Many finance professionals are not required to have up-to-date certifications or licenses. CPAs, if they are not practicing where their license is required, can put it in escrow. Township Treasurers have absolutely no requirements to do their job, other than qualifying for a bond to collect taxes.
My CGFM designation was a result of my desire to keep myself current on financial matters. My interest in the profession is what kept me involved in state and national committees. Without on-going training I would never have performed at the level I did while in office. I would have had to constantly rely on an audit firm to make sure I was fulfilling the basic requirements. I went to as much training as I could and I adopted each advanced pronouncement by the Government Accounting Standards Board if it affected my office. I tried to stay ahead of my peers.
Everyone who reads the paper and gets upset about the financial condition of their local unit should look at the people working in the finance and treasury departments. Are they trained and current on 'Best Practices?' Can they effectively discuss all aspects of their job or are they just putting numbers in columns with little idea of the big picture?
Training and education are extremely important. And sometimes that training is best found out-of-state. Spend now and train or suffer the consequences later.
The perception among many senior leaders that training isn't "mission-critical" is often the reason why the training budget is the first on the chopping block when companies look to reduce expenses. But as previous American Society of Training & Development and i4cp studies have shown, cutting the training budget is a practice most associated with low-performing organizations; high performers generally keep it intact. Kevin Oakes, CEO i4cp
Acronyms
Acronyms are defined as a word formed from the initial letters or groups of letters of words in a set phrase or series of words.
Back in the 1980s a group formed in West Bloomfield called OUST. Their purpose was to recall four elected Township officials, but they ended up only trying to recall one and he survived the election. (The others resigned) The letters stood for 'Organization United to Save our Township'.
This morning's news has an article on a group organizing to recall the Governor. Their slogan is 'Stand Up and Fight'. I was thinking that they could use the acronym: STUF IT. Or not.
Back in the 1980s a group formed in West Bloomfield called OUST. Their purpose was to recall four elected Township officials, but they ended up only trying to recall one and he survived the election. (The others resigned) The letters stood for 'Organization United to Save our Township'.
This morning's news has an article on a group organizing to recall the Governor. Their slogan is 'Stand Up and Fight'. I was thinking that they could use the acronym: STUF IT. Or not.
What am I Missing?
I was in East Lansing yesterday at the Michigan Government Finance Officers Association Spring Seminar. I was speaking after lunch and a keynote by Tim Skubick, a hard act to follow for me. But I also wanted to be there for the first presentation in the morning with State Treasurer Andy Dillon as speaker. And let's face it, I was curious to hear what everyone else was saying about the budget proposals in Michigan.
I sat there during the day hearing the statement that I had already seen in the press: How is it fair to have two households earning the same income when the retired senior does not have to pay income tax and the family of four does?
I will refrain from telling you what my business law teacher kept telling my class about 'fair'. I will ask you why this has so many people upset when we have had unequal property taxation in Michigan since the passage of Proposal A.
I have lived in my house since 1972. Many of my neighbors purchased their homes after Prop A and saw their property values uncapped as a result. Their property taxes were much higher than mine up until the decline that began in 2007. How has that been fair? Well, not fair, but it was, and is, the law of the state.
Do they receive more services for their money? I think not. And most of them are empty-nesters, so they do not receive the benefits of local education. We just get to pay the taxes.
The state expenditures are weighted heavily for Medicaid and corrections. I don't know anyone taking advantage of these programs. I think that prisoners are a bigger drain on our limited dollars in the state than retired seniors. I need to pay taxes to provide them with the internet?
I have never tried any illegal drug. I am thinking that if I had, my thinking might be as screwed up as some of these other folks and then they might make sense to me. I know I am missing something very logical here. I just can't figure out what it is.
I sat there during the day hearing the statement that I had already seen in the press: How is it fair to have two households earning the same income when the retired senior does not have to pay income tax and the family of four does?
I will refrain from telling you what my business law teacher kept telling my class about 'fair'. I will ask you why this has so many people upset when we have had unequal property taxation in Michigan since the passage of Proposal A.
I have lived in my house since 1972. Many of my neighbors purchased their homes after Prop A and saw their property values uncapped as a result. Their property taxes were much higher than mine up until the decline that began in 2007. How has that been fair? Well, not fair, but it was, and is, the law of the state.
Do they receive more services for their money? I think not. And most of them are empty-nesters, so they do not receive the benefits of local education. We just get to pay the taxes.
The state expenditures are weighted heavily for Medicaid and corrections. I don't know anyone taking advantage of these programs. I think that prisoners are a bigger drain on our limited dollars in the state than retired seniors. I need to pay taxes to provide them with the internet?
I have never tried any illegal drug. I am thinking that if I had, my thinking might be as screwed up as some of these other folks and then they might make sense to me. I know I am missing something very logical here. I just can't figure out what it is.
A Waste of Time and Dollars?
I spent two hours yesterday doing my taxes. That was only time spent entering all the data on TurboTax. That was after I went through all of my receipts, catalogued everything, and made sure I actually had everything I needed to start.
It got me thinking, yet again, that there has to be a better way to collect taxes. You go to a store and pay a sales tax. Once or twice a year you get a property tax bill. If you have an escrow account for taxes, you do not even have to think about it until Federal tax time. When I worked for Detroit, my city income tax was deducted from my pay, but it was so straightforward, I never even filed to get my refund of overpayment. It was too much trouble.
Not so with Federal taxes. A 'you know what' nightmare. So much wasted time. I found this online in Wikipedia:
The cost of preparing and filing all business and personal tax returns is estimated to be $250 to $300 billion each year. According to a 2005 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the efficiency cost of the tax system—the output that is lost over and above the tax itself—is between $240 billion and $600 billion per year.
I am sure we have better uses for those dollars and lost productivity.
It got me thinking, yet again, that there has to be a better way to collect taxes. You go to a store and pay a sales tax. Once or twice a year you get a property tax bill. If you have an escrow account for taxes, you do not even have to think about it until Federal tax time. When I worked for Detroit, my city income tax was deducted from my pay, but it was so straightforward, I never even filed to get my refund of overpayment. It was too much trouble.
Not so with Federal taxes. A 'you know what' nightmare. So much wasted time. I found this online in Wikipedia:
The cost of preparing and filing all business and personal tax returns is estimated to be $250 to $300 billion each year. According to a 2005 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the efficiency cost of the tax system—the output that is lost over and above the tax itself—is between $240 billion and $600 billion per year.
I am sure we have better uses for those dollars and lost productivity.
A Suggestion
The West Bloomfield Board made it into the papers again this morning. Above the fold on the front page. Before we have any more letters to the editor, pronouncements at Board meetings, or lawsuits, let's have all citizens of the community, including the Board members and other onlookers, read the following documents and demonstrate that they fully understand what they mean.
Accounting Procedures Manual
Uniform Budget Act
Charter Township Act
It seems that everyone is an expert. Charter Townships do not get to make their own rules and neither do their citizens. That's what all these laws and established procedures are for.
I was on the committee that wrote this latest Accounting Manual and I would hate to think we wrote it only for the benefit of our committee and to fulfill a requirement in the law.
Accounting Procedures Manual
Uniform Budget Act
Charter Township Act
It seems that everyone is an expert. Charter Townships do not get to make their own rules and neither do their citizens. That's what all these laws and established procedures are for.
I was on the committee that wrote this latest Accounting Manual and I would hate to think we wrote it only for the benefit of our committee and to fulfill a requirement in the law.
Someone thinking Like Me
The idea of someone thinking as I do may be scary to some folks. So be it. Today's Free Press has a story sub-headed 'Brown: Let civilians do desk, guard jobs'. Hallelujah!
For the twenty years I was at West Bloomfield I questioned why we had so many public safety folks sitting at desks. I blogged about this issue last year.
Now comes Councilman Brown in Detroit asking the same questions. I won't repeat myself and you are probably giving a 'thumbs up' to that. But we do have to find the most effective use of our public employees and the tax dollars that support them. Can I at least get a nod in agreement?
For the twenty years I was at West Bloomfield I questioned why we had so many public safety folks sitting at desks. I blogged about this issue last year.
Now comes Councilman Brown in Detroit asking the same questions. I won't repeat myself and you are probably giving a 'thumbs up' to that. But we do have to find the most effective use of our public employees and the tax dollars that support them. Can I at least get a nod in agreement?
A Clarification
Now that my post 'The Bullies Organize' has moved into the top five most-viewed posts on this blog, I just want to clarify something. I was not the one to call seniors 'bullies'. That was Nolan Finley's term in the Detroit News. Please see my blog titled 'Who's the Bully?' on March 6. Or read the editorial opinion yourself.
Us Money-grubbing Seniors
So our new Governor thinks that seniors should be taxed on their pensions because they are 'reasonably high users of services.' I read this statement online last night and have been trying to figure out what services I am using to excess.
I moved into my home in 1972. I faithfully paid my school taxes. I did not use the services until 1982 and have not used them since 1999. Did I get more than my share for paying taxes over the last 39 years?
When I updated my 34 square foot bathroom this year, my township charged me $590 in fees. For what? They did NO work at all, other than sending some folks out to look and chat. And not that they are the only ones to blame because they are only enforcing the state's construction code.
Police services? I made one report after someone tried to use my credit card in Brooklyn, NY. Fire services? Luckily, none since I retired in 2008.
I am really tired of being portrayed as a bully and a monetary drain on society. One thing I learned when I was in politics is that just because some idea pops into your head, it is not always a good idea to voice it publicly.
Many seniors have something many young families do not have: Disposable income. We can spend it in Michigan, or if we are such a drain, we can take it and spend it elsewhere. The choice of what policy is going to be followed is now up to our legislators.
I moved into my home in 1972. I faithfully paid my school taxes. I did not use the services until 1982 and have not used them since 1999. Did I get more than my share for paying taxes over the last 39 years?
When I updated my 34 square foot bathroom this year, my township charged me $590 in fees. For what? They did NO work at all, other than sending some folks out to look and chat. And not that they are the only ones to blame because they are only enforcing the state's construction code.
Police services? I made one report after someone tried to use my credit card in Brooklyn, NY. Fire services? Luckily, none since I retired in 2008.
I am really tired of being portrayed as a bully and a monetary drain on society. One thing I learned when I was in politics is that just because some idea pops into your head, it is not always a good idea to voice it publicly.
Many seniors have something many young families do not have: Disposable income. We can spend it in Michigan, or if we are such a drain, we can take it and spend it elsewhere. The choice of what policy is going to be followed is now up to our legislators.
The 'Bullies' Organize
Please join us for a rally at the Michigan State Capitol!
AARP Michigan is hosting a rally in reaction to a State Budget proposal presented by the Governor that calls for over $1 billion in tax increases on retirees, seniors and the working poor, while cutting quality-of-life programs and services by $1.2 billion and giving businesses a $1.8 billion tax cut. AARP believes this budget is an all out attack on older Michiganders. We believe what our members are getting in this plan is a much higher tax bill and reduced services. This plan would raise taxes on 1.1 million seniors in exchange for a business tax cut, while also reducing spending for public schools and universities, police and fire fighters, local road repairs and other vital programs and services. This is unfair and unacceptable!
Join us!
It’s Not Fair! Rally
Location: Michigan State Capitol Building, east steps
Corner of Michigan Avenue and Capitol Avenue
Lansing
Date: Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Time: 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
AARP Michigan is hosting a rally in reaction to a State Budget proposal presented by the Governor that calls for over $1 billion in tax increases on retirees, seniors and the working poor, while cutting quality-of-life programs and services by $1.2 billion and giving businesses a $1.8 billion tax cut. AARP believes this budget is an all out attack on older Michiganders. We believe what our members are getting in this plan is a much higher tax bill and reduced services. This plan would raise taxes on 1.1 million seniors in exchange for a business tax cut, while also reducing spending for public schools and universities, police and fire fighters, local road repairs and other vital programs and services. This is unfair and unacceptable!
Join us!
It’s Not Fair! Rally
Location: Michigan State Capitol Building, east steps
Corner of Michigan Avenue and Capitol Avenue
Lansing
Date: Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Time: 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
Tid-Bits
1. According to today's Oakland Press, St. Clair Shores brought a former assessor out of retirement to get them through tax season. The guy, who is only 57 years old and retired in 2003, is having trouble learning voice mail and how to operate the copy machine. Really? He actually said that? No copy machines or voice mail in 2003? This place is in Michigan isn't it? Makes me wonder about the assessments there.
2. Seems West Bloomfield is at it again (Oakland Press). This time it's about the use of the Township's heron logo which was adopted back when I was on the Board. It went on our business cards and stationery. Seems a couple of new officials changed their business cards and removed the heron and placed their pictures on the cards instead. The first time I saw one I laughed and said they looked like realtor business cards. Anyway, the Board voted 'nix' on that and everyone will use the standard design. I'm glad I missed that live discussion. Good for the Board. Voters do not really need to know what we look like in order to make an intelligent decision in the voting booth. Can you say 'self-promotion' at taxpayers' expense?
2. Seems West Bloomfield is at it again (Oakland Press). This time it's about the use of the Township's heron logo which was adopted back when I was on the Board. It went on our business cards and stationery. Seems a couple of new officials changed their business cards and removed the heron and placed their pictures on the cards instead. The first time I saw one I laughed and said they looked like realtor business cards. Anyway, the Board voted 'nix' on that and everyone will use the standard design. I'm glad I missed that live discussion. Good for the Board. Voters do not really need to know what we look like in order to make an intelligent decision in the voting booth. Can you say 'self-promotion' at taxpayers' expense?
Who's the Bully?
OK. I got all the way to page 25A, from page 17A, in the last twenty minutes. You know, I should have just started a fire with the newspaper. Or went out and bought a birdcage with bird attached.
Enter the Detroit News Editorial Editor Nolan Finley. 'Grit needed to win budget fight'.
Mr. Finley refers to senior citizens as 'the biggest lobbying bully'.
Wow. I said the other say that I had been called worse things than a sissy. Actually, I had another 'B' word in mind, but now I guess I can add a new 'B' word. He says we are raising 'holy hell'.
OMG. My rebellious college days must be coming back. Is there an SDS rally scheduled somewhere? (My sociology class had to attend one at Wayne when I was there.)
Mr. Finley goes on to say that the Governor's 'got to get all 26 GOP senators in a small room and bang on them until they're straightened out'.
A double OMG. What is this? The reincarnation of some long lost dictator?
The other day a friend of mine said that when she and her husband were in college all the journalism majors were the campus pot-heads. I'm beginning to think she is right. They must be smokin' somethin'. How else to explain calling seniors 'bullies' while telling the Governor to bully the legislators? OMG.
Enter the Detroit News Editorial Editor Nolan Finley. 'Grit needed to win budget fight'.
Mr. Finley refers to senior citizens as 'the biggest lobbying bully'.
Wow. I said the other say that I had been called worse things than a sissy. Actually, I had another 'B' word in mind, but now I guess I can add a new 'B' word. He says we are raising 'holy hell'.
OMG. My rebellious college days must be coming back. Is there an SDS rally scheduled somewhere? (My sociology class had to attend one at Wayne when I was there.)
Mr. Finley goes on to say that the Governor's 'got to get all 26 GOP senators in a small room and bang on them until they're straightened out'.
A double OMG. What is this? The reincarnation of some long lost dictator?
The other day a friend of mine said that when she and her husband were in college all the journalism majors were the campus pot-heads. I'm beginning to think she is right. They must be smokin' somethin'. How else to explain calling seniors 'bullies' while telling the Governor to bully the legislators? OMG.
Unfair Justification for a Tax Increase
It is now after 3:00 in the afternoon on a Sunday and I just finished reading the front section of today's Detroit Free Press. I go it out of my mailbox at 6:30 this morning, but when I saw the front page listing not one or two, but at least ten different articles on the Governor's budget, I took the first three sections of the paper and said 'Later'. Now, 'later' has arrived.
First, let me say that I had received notice last week that the Lt. Governor was going to address the House Tax Policy Committee regarding the Governor's budget. I opted to stay home rather than drive to Lansing to listen to the messenger.
Fast forward to today and there on page 17A is a 'POLI-BITES' titled 'Engler poster boy for need to tax pensions'. Shame on you Mr. Calley. Nothing like a little distortion of public pensions to make a point. Apparently, our former legislator and Governor has two public pensions totalling $186,200 a year and a seven figure salary. Calley asked if he really needed a 'tax-free' pension. (Good for Mr. Engler for landing a seven figure salary in his new job. I'm guessing he has to pay taxes on it in whatever jurisdiction it is earned.)
First, I would like to know why he has two pensions when he only worked for one employer for 37 years. Seems the State has a problem there. And an automatic annual increase of 4% every year? Health care after six years? Lansing needs to get their own house (and senate) in order before they strike out at public employees.
Let's start by looking at the public employees I know best - those in West Bloomfield. There is no pension credit for more than thirty years of service. General Office employees can only receive a maximum of 60% of their final average salary and police and fire are capped at 80%. Work forty years as a police officer and retire? You get 80% of your final average compensation. The same you would have gotten at 30 years. Leave with thirty years of seniority as an office clerk and are only 50 years old? No retiree health care for you. You must stay until you are 55 to get it. And if you leave at 55 and take your pension, it will be at a reduced amount. And I know of no one who ever left with a six-figure pension. I certainly didn't. Not even close.
As for the annual increase, the cost of living for West Bloomfield pensions is tied to a Federal clerical index. Last year it went down and this year the increase was barely noticeable.
They way I see it, some legislators in the past rewarded themselves with nice pensions and perks and now the new guys in town want everyone who was busy teaching their children, catching their criminals, and fighting their fires to ante up and pay the piper.
For the Lt. Governor to complain that the State is not getting money on the pension of Mr. Engler and use that as justification for taxing all pensions is unfair. Seems like he and newspaper reporters love to point out all of the high pensions payed to a select few individuals. And the public loves to hear it and complain that they do not want to pay for public pensions.
What I want to know is, where are the articles on folks complaining about the high salaries payed to sports figures. Is the public not paying their salaries? Tickets to games? Advertising costs rolled into merchandise you buy with their names on it? Would you rather pay the salary and pension of the man pulling you out of a burning house or a crushed car or the salary of the guy running the football down the field? Just asking.
First, let me say that I had received notice last week that the Lt. Governor was going to address the House Tax Policy Committee regarding the Governor's budget. I opted to stay home rather than drive to Lansing to listen to the messenger.
Fast forward to today and there on page 17A is a 'POLI-BITES' titled 'Engler poster boy for need to tax pensions'. Shame on you Mr. Calley. Nothing like a little distortion of public pensions to make a point. Apparently, our former legislator and Governor has two public pensions totalling $186,200 a year and a seven figure salary. Calley asked if he really needed a 'tax-free' pension. (Good for Mr. Engler for landing a seven figure salary in his new job. I'm guessing he has to pay taxes on it in whatever jurisdiction it is earned.)
First, I would like to know why he has two pensions when he only worked for one employer for 37 years. Seems the State has a problem there. And an automatic annual increase of 4% every year? Health care after six years? Lansing needs to get their own house (and senate) in order before they strike out at public employees.
Let's start by looking at the public employees I know best - those in West Bloomfield. There is no pension credit for more than thirty years of service. General Office employees can only receive a maximum of 60% of their final average salary and police and fire are capped at 80%. Work forty years as a police officer and retire? You get 80% of your final average compensation. The same you would have gotten at 30 years. Leave with thirty years of seniority as an office clerk and are only 50 years old? No retiree health care for you. You must stay until you are 55 to get it. And if you leave at 55 and take your pension, it will be at a reduced amount. And I know of no one who ever left with a six-figure pension. I certainly didn't. Not even close.
As for the annual increase, the cost of living for West Bloomfield pensions is tied to a Federal clerical index. Last year it went down and this year the increase was barely noticeable.
They way I see it, some legislators in the past rewarded themselves with nice pensions and perks and now the new guys in town want everyone who was busy teaching their children, catching their criminals, and fighting their fires to ante up and pay the piper.
For the Lt. Governor to complain that the State is not getting money on the pension of Mr. Engler and use that as justification for taxing all pensions is unfair. Seems like he and newspaper reporters love to point out all of the high pensions payed to a select few individuals. And the public loves to hear it and complain that they do not want to pay for public pensions.
What I want to know is, where are the articles on folks complaining about the high salaries payed to sports figures. Is the public not paying their salaries? Tickets to games? Advertising costs rolled into merchandise you buy with their names on it? Would you rather pay the salary and pension of the man pulling you out of a burning house or a crushed car or the salary of the guy running the football down the field? Just asking.
Food for Thought
Those who seek absolute power, even though they seek it to do what they regard as good, are simply demanding the right to enforce their own version of heaven on earth. And let me remind you, they are the very ones who always create the most hellish tyrannies. Absolute power does corrupt, and those who seek it must be suspect and must be opposed.Sen. Barry Goldwater (b. 1909 d. 1998)
And They can't Read Either.
From the Michigan State Constitution:
§ 24 Public pension plans and retirement systems, obligation.
Sec. 24.
The accrued financial benefits of each pension plan and retirement system of the state and its political subdivisions shall be a contractual obligation thereof which shall not be diminished or impaired thereby.
Financial benefits arising on account of service rendered in each fiscal year shall be funded during that year and such funding shall not be used for financing unfunded accrued liabilities.
History: Const. 1963, Art. IX, § 24, Eff. Jan. 1, 1964
OK. So maybe I can read but can't interpret? Seems to me if the State Constitution says that an accrued benefit CANNOT be diminished, doesn't that mean that if you suddenly decide to TAX the benefit, you are diminishing it?
The Detroit New reported today on how the proposal will affect seniors and others. Get this: A middle-income retired couple would see a 356% increase in taxes. And not to just pick on seniors, the proposal would increase taxes for a single parent with low-income and two children by 92%.
It's snowing again outside. Guess what I am thinking.
§ 24 Public pension plans and retirement systems, obligation.
Sec. 24.
The accrued financial benefits of each pension plan and retirement system of the state and its political subdivisions shall be a contractual obligation thereof which shall not be diminished or impaired thereby.
Financial benefits arising on account of service rendered in each fiscal year shall be funded during that year and such funding shall not be used for financing unfunded accrued liabilities.
History: Const. 1963, Art. IX, § 24, Eff. Jan. 1, 1964
OK. So maybe I can read but can't interpret? Seems to me if the State Constitution says that an accrued benefit CANNOT be diminished, doesn't that mean that if you suddenly decide to TAX the benefit, you are diminishing it?
The Detroit New reported today on how the proposal will affect seniors and others. Get this: A middle-income retired couple would see a 356% increase in taxes. And not to just pick on seniors, the proposal would increase taxes for a single parent with low-income and two children by 92%.
It's snowing again outside. Guess what I am thinking.
Remember 1994?
Does anyone out there remember the 1994 elections? On the day after them a friend of mine said that the Republicans were taking over for good after their 54-seat increase in the House of Representatives. I laughed and told him to wait two years. I told him that with Newt Gingrich leading the charge, they were sure to find defeat in 1996. And two years later the Republicans gave up nine of their House seats. In addition, though maintaining control of the House, they lost the popular vote and Bill Clinton got a second term as President. Even I voted for him.
I am thinking of all of this as I watch what is going on in Wisconsin and Michigan. They say elephants never forget, but obviously these elephants do not only forget history, they forget who votes.
I am thinking of all of this as I watch what is going on in Wisconsin and Michigan. They say elephants never forget, but obviously these elephants do not only forget history, they forget who votes.
Get Over It
West Bloomfield stress may not have given me a heart attack, but I swear that the City of Pontiac may. I should just ignore all the articles in the Oakland Press, but it may be too late for that.
Here it is in a nutshell to the citizens, especially the elected officials: GET OVER IT.
The new piece of legislation that has passed the House in Michigan, HB 4214, would establish new procedures for Emergency Financial Managers. Specifically, the act, if passed in its present form, would give power to an EFM : to revoke labor contracts, suspend collective bargaining for up to five years, become the sole trustee of an underfunded pension system, and suspend the power and authority of city managers and local elected officials.
Where does it say in this legislation that people will lose their pension? The pension board chairman has confused the Municipal Employees' Retirement System with the (State of) Michigan Employees' Retirement System. I mean, my head starts spinning when I read these stories and I wonder if perhaps I am the one who is confused.
If residents do not like that idea that someone will come in and run their local government, then they need to make better choices about who they elect in the first place. We cannot continue down a path of voting for our friends, or the guy we want to share a beer with, and then allowing them to run a municipality into bankruptcy.
We do need to get back to only supplying services mandated by law and charters and not all the perks that residents want, unless the residents are willing to vote extra millage for doing so.
Is this new proposal scary? It should be. It should be meant to scare every elected official who thinks that getting elected to run a government is the same as leading the neighborhood block club. That we can make up the rules as we go and that there are no consequences for poor choices. This proposal should serve as a wake-up call to the millions in this state.
Everyone thinks government would be more efficient if we ran it like a business. So I ask you, would you want any of your local elected officials to run the business you own or have a vested interest in?
Here it is in a nutshell to the citizens, especially the elected officials: GET OVER IT.
The new piece of legislation that has passed the House in Michigan, HB 4214, would establish new procedures for Emergency Financial Managers. Specifically, the act, if passed in its present form, would give power to an EFM : to revoke labor contracts, suspend collective bargaining for up to five years, become the sole trustee of an underfunded pension system, and suspend the power and authority of city managers and local elected officials.
Where does it say in this legislation that people will lose their pension? The pension board chairman has confused the Municipal Employees' Retirement System with the (State of) Michigan Employees' Retirement System. I mean, my head starts spinning when I read these stories and I wonder if perhaps I am the one who is confused.
If residents do not like that idea that someone will come in and run their local government, then they need to make better choices about who they elect in the first place. We cannot continue down a path of voting for our friends, or the guy we want to share a beer with, and then allowing them to run a municipality into bankruptcy.
We do need to get back to only supplying services mandated by law and charters and not all the perks that residents want, unless the residents are willing to vote extra millage for doing so.
Is this new proposal scary? It should be. It should be meant to scare every elected official who thinks that getting elected to run a government is the same as leading the neighborhood block club. That we can make up the rules as we go and that there are no consequences for poor choices. This proposal should serve as a wake-up call to the millions in this state.
Everyone thinks government would be more efficient if we ran it like a business. So I ask you, would you want any of your local elected officials to run the business you own or have a vested interest in?
The Ghost Breakers
No, that is not a typo. It is Ghost Breakers, not Ghostbusters. 'The Ghost Breakers' is a 1940 movie that stars Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard. I rented it after reading some of its one-liners in a book I was reading.
Anyway, Bob is on his way to a haunted castle in Cuba. He hears there is a zombie there and asks a Cuban what a zombie is. The reply is 'a zombie has no will of his own and you see them sometimes walking around blindly with dead eyes, following orders and not knowing what they do, not caring'. Hope replies, 'You mean like Democrats?'
OK. So not everyone in the movie audience probably thought it was funny. But unless the folks in Lansing do some serious discussing of these new tax proposals in the Governor's budget, the description might fit both parties.
Anyway, Bob is on his way to a haunted castle in Cuba. He hears there is a zombie there and asks a Cuban what a zombie is. The reply is 'a zombie has no will of his own and you see them sometimes walking around blindly with dead eyes, following orders and not knowing what they do, not caring'. Hope replies, 'You mean like Democrats?'
OK. So not everyone in the movie audience probably thought it was funny. But unless the folks in Lansing do some serious discussing of these new tax proposals in the Governor's budget, the description might fit both parties.
Remember this
Headline in the online Oakland Press: TOWN HALL at 4 p.m. to discuss Rick Snyder's proposed budget
The speakers will be Rep. Melton and Rep. Moss. I hope that Rep. Moss remembers a few things from years past.
In 2007 I was considering a run for State office. I met with Rep. Moss and members of the Republican Party. Obviously, running without party support is not a great idea if you want to win.
So, off to Lansing I went. We spent a good 45 minutes to an hour discussing my pro-choice stance. It did not play with the men. Then we moved on to gun control. I told them if they kept their hands off my uterus, I would keep my hands off their guns. Did not go over well, to say the least.
Anyway, those issues were incidental to my being asked if I would have supported Governor Granholm's tax increases. I said that I thought the income tax should have stayed at the higher levels instead of rolling it back and that I favored a state tax on services. BZZZT. Buzzer alert. WRONG answer.
See my name on a ballot in 2008? Of course not. I hope that the Republican Party and Rep. Moss remember all of that when they start looking at taxing seniors' pensions. This is OK how in relation to a service tax? Or any other for that matter.
What ever happened to the mantra of Governor Engler: Promises Made, Promises Kept.
The speakers will be Rep. Melton and Rep. Moss. I hope that Rep. Moss remembers a few things from years past.
In 2007 I was considering a run for State office. I met with Rep. Moss and members of the Republican Party. Obviously, running without party support is not a great idea if you want to win.
So, off to Lansing I went. We spent a good 45 minutes to an hour discussing my pro-choice stance. It did not play with the men. Then we moved on to gun control. I told them if they kept their hands off my uterus, I would keep my hands off their guns. Did not go over well, to say the least.
Anyway, those issues were incidental to my being asked if I would have supported Governor Granholm's tax increases. I said that I thought the income tax should have stayed at the higher levels instead of rolling it back and that I favored a state tax on services. BZZZT. Buzzer alert. WRONG answer.
See my name on a ballot in 2008? Of course not. I hope that the Republican Party and Rep. Moss remember all of that when they start looking at taxing seniors' pensions. This is OK how in relation to a service tax? Or any other for that matter.
What ever happened to the mantra of Governor Engler: Promises Made, Promises Kept.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
-
My absentee ballot is still sitting on the kitchen counter top where I first opened it. I am pretty sure I will not be voting for all the o...
-
Attorney Gregory Yates attorney , who are customers and employees to defraud consistently dishonest. Avoid his next victim. In this case, l...
-
First of all, I have to say that although I did not know Lisa Roswell, I was saddened by the tragedy of her death. My condolences to all wh...