Hi Ann,
Thanks for your message! You raise some very important points. I have posted several comments on the article you mention and the accompanying list of high-paid employees to the SFGate.com site, as well as sending emails to several lists and individuals discussing the issue. It is an absolute outrage that 1 in 3 SF government employees "earns" $100,000 or more annually -- not even counting benefits and pensions. One of my main campaign messages is to cap the salaries of city government employees at $99,999 a year. I also pledge to oppose any effort to raise Supervisor salaries -- in fact they should be lowered, and the measure authorizing the hiring of additional supervisorial aides should be repealed.
The overtime situation is a bit complicated, because city employee unions have gotten the system so rigged that it may in some cases actually be *less* expensive to pay ridiculous amounts of overtime than to hire additional employees, due to payouts for benefits and pensions that typically far exceed those for people doing similar work in non-government organizations. But I am in favor of significantly lowering the pay rate for overtime work. "Overtime" is a completely arbitrary concept to begin with, and especially when working longer hours is voluntary, pay should be reduced to the lowest level at which sufficient numbers of volunteers can be found to perform the tasks.
Of course in many cases, the most rational solution is to simply have government workers do less, such as by eliminating the 10b off-duty policing program as you sensibly suggest! It is similarly unnecessary and wasteful to have police resources expended on controversial and often non-complaint-driven enforcement such as arresting people for choosing what to put into their own bodies, or arresting people for having consensual sexual relations with other adults. Even simply requiring that each arrest must be based on a documented, written citizen complaint unless an officer certifies that there is an immediate risk to life, liberty, or property, could greatly reduce the need for police overtime that is currently such a huge budget-buster.
The city should officially embrace the SF Patrol Specials program, completely remove the SFPD from having any say or authority over the program, and adopt a zero tolerance policy for SFPD members engaging in any pressure of merchants not to use the Patrol Specials or other improper lobbying against the program.
I'll bet much savings could also be realized by ceasing the practice of sending entire fire trucks and multi-person crews on errands such as rescuing cats from trees, or responding to paramedic emergencies that could be handled by a couple of paramedics in an ambulance or even an ordinary vehicle. City government is riddled with unnecessary spending that should be eliminated before tax or fee increases or cuts to services valued by the public are even considered.
I am not afraid of incurring opposition from the government unions that have a vested interest in perpetuating the status quo -- these unions are out of control. I invite my fellow candidates to join me in standing proudly with taxpaying San Francisco residents against the ever-increasing cost of government and the special interests who drive it.
Love & Liberty,
((( starchild )))
Candidate for Supervisor, District 8