Dear Everyone;
After the new budget reports showed a massive increase in City employee pay, benefits and pension contributions I wrote an anti-raise LTE and the SF Examiner published.
Ron Getty
SF Libertarian
http://www.examiner.com/a-165402~Letters__July_1st_2nd__2006.html
Letters: July 1st-2nd, 2006 The Examiner - SAN FRANCISCO
Generosity of city worker benefits
City employees and their benefits are bleeding San Francisco taxpayers. Employee salaries, benefits and pensions take up $2.98 billion, or 52 percent of the new $5.7 billion budget. Not included are the hundreds of millions of dollars in unfunded liabilities for retired city employees’ health plans.
The new budget places an $8,000 tax burden on each city resident. This is paid through higher prices for all basic necessities and amenities. Foolish people say we should tax businesses more to come up with the money. What’s ignored is that businesses get the tax money they pay from people who pay for goods and services sold. Higher taxes mean higher prices.
City officials must significantly cut back on the number of city employees, their wages and benefits, and they must bid out services to competitive enterprise to cut the cancerous budget that is eating San Francisco taxpayers.
Ron Getty
The City