By james art We strongly oppose the upcoming referendum in the city of Madison.
City Council refuses to prioritize safety over unnecessary services. Equating police and fire protection to tree trimming, leaf collection and a host of non-essential social services shows a reluctance to define what is important.
This was highlighted by the city government, which asked all departments to submit budgets with 5% cuts. Asking the police and fire departments to cut 5% in a growing city is completely irresponsible.
The Council hasn’t met a social program it doesn’t like. As a result, the Community Development Department, which does some good things, is still spending too much on non-essential services that need to be scrapped.
The department’s goal is to improve the quality of life for Madison residents. But spending on staff training and career development, which should be the role of schools, is unnecessary in difficult times.
In addition, the department supports organizations such as Freedom Inc., Urban Triage and others that pay huge executive salaries, have a history of budget mismanagement and are difficult to monitor.
Limiting the Community Development Department’s budget while increasing that of the police and fire departments should be the main budget goal of city leaders at this time.
Jerry and Bonnie Darda, Madison