It was all about raising electric rates 76 cents a month or go in the hole. What did this commission majority do?
On Tuesday night when this commission was voting on the most important vote for the entire year (a budget of $179,420,309 of your money), Commissioner McVoy introduced some information that NEVER was given to the dais until that day on the electric utility. There was no explanation from the city manager, Michael Bornstein, as to why it was withheld. In spite of the new information to build up reserves rather than raiding them, Triolo, Maxwell and Amoroso voted to dip into our savings rather than raise electric rates by an average of 76 CENTS A MONTH.
Instead Maxwell didn't even want the information included in the record because McVoy had written on the screenshots in a red marking and added a brief explanation on each scenario. Mayior Triolo was only concerned that they had made a law three years ago for rate parity with FPL and Amoroso's contribution was to call a Point of Order when he didn't like McVoy's "criticism." Not one of the three were going to divert from this hot political potato.
Following are the three Burton & Associates reports. You can see that the important content is the same. Maxwell, so used to being a bully on the dais, came up with a silly reason not to include Commissioner McVoy's important information in the public record.
RATE PLAN OPTION 1: 1% increases to rates for FY 2017 - 2019
Achieves 3-month reserve target by FY 2020
Click Here
RATE PLAN OPTION 2: 1% increases to rates for FY 2016 - 2018
Achieves 3-month reserve target by FY 2019
Click Here
RATE PLAN OPTION 3: 2% increases to rates for FY 2016 - 2017
Achieves 3-month reserve target by FY 2018
Click Here
This is worth showing again- With the three commissioners, Maxwell, Triolo and Amoroso voting down the increase, puts us in the hole by $1.276 million. As they talked about the budget as being a "living document" with changes to numbers throughout this budget process and we are supposed to accept that as normal, what do they care, right? It's not their money but it is about their re-election.
Maybe we won't lose just $1.276 million--maybe it will be more...What we do know with this bunch, it's hard to save for a rainy day when three commissioners want to play politics.
12 comments:
Seems like you are criticizing him for not raising electric rates, which I cannot understand why. I certainly don't my rate to go up even 1 penny and neither does anyone else that I know who live in lake worth. So he what's the problem?
You can't read? What about comprehension? That's illusive too?
But they were all for raising water rates, what does it matter what they raise if overall utilities are going up. Why criticize a suggestion that we raise electric rates to improve reserves but readily embrace a water rate increase.
Why don't you tell me, anonymous.
As said, the electric rates and the parking at the beach are ALL POLITICAL.
This commission raised fees across the board but to dip into reserves by 1.27 million is responsible?
But I think we're still missing the point…
McVoy could not legally insert a rate hike in electric utility into the budget. This is because there is a law on the books that prevents it. It's called rate parity.
If he had been thinking he should have started about 2-3 months ago when they were all holding budget workshops and he could have offered up an ordinance to repeal the rate parity law.
At least then the public (and the entire commission) would have know what he wanted to do. Pulling this rate hike idea out of his head at the last minute - literally at the first required, first reading of the budget, on a tight timeline to pass a balanced budget, before the Stare law mandated, end of September deadline, totally ensured his idea was doomed to fail because it was illegal given the current law on the books.
Poor planning on his part - or a half baked idea. Is he trying to run for mayor thinking he can be a rogue commissioner? I'm wondering how all us little people are going to get thru to him - we DO NOT want rate hikes!!! I'm saying NO to him and glad the budget passed.
I work hard for my money... Keep your hands out of my pocket!
I don't believe that the rate request would have amounted to 76 cents a month. No increase in our electric rates is fair. We have been gauged for years so that we can support a city that has too many not paying their fair share of the cost of running the city. If we can't afford something we should do away with it. Close the pool, close the library and whatever else needs to be cut. I say raise the tax base or shut down the city and lets become part of the county. I am sick and tired of paying for other people's services.
@2:22...he brought it up during budget discussion. This commission needed to re-write the ordinance...that's all it would have taken. He didn't come up with this by pulling it out of a hat.
You may not want a rate hike of 76 cents a month but you would rather the city take $1.276 MILLION out of reserves because you don't want a hike? Are you serious????????????????
Yes I'm serious... He did not follow proper protocol and that is a matter of public record
And I'm with Anom at 2:39. Raise the tax base by getting rid of these friggen sober homes and do-called recovery pariahs - half way houses and these addict hide aways are over whelming our neighborhoods, over burdening our municipal resources with overdoses and PBSO calls, changing the very character of our residential neighborhoods, endangering our kids by unknown vagrants and transients of questionable histories, dragging down our property values and more!!!
They are driving visitors and customers away from out downtown because they hang out in groups, panhandle pedestrians and shop keepers, and gather in large questionable numbers, intimidate people with their aggressiveness in our public spaces, overwhelm the downtown parking with so-called 'meeting' where bus after bus comes from who know a where to 'J' street, leaving no parking for the restaurant patrons to park...
I've seen openly, on-going drug use and drug deals in front of Starbucks, in the alley and I front of CJ's, and at Cultural Plaza... Then they stumble around like zombies, pass out in their own vomit right on out city streets. It's awful! Do you really expect for normal people to step over this crap to enter a restaurant?
Clean this crap up and law abiding people will want to come down here, spend money, go to the beach, take care of their properties and that is how you raise the tax base... By getting rid of the leaches who drag us down!
I'm with you, 3:37. Unfortunately, Sober Living Houses are a federal and state issue to solve with better regulations that protect our neighborhoods. We need to clean up this city in many ways.
We need to order a couple thousand red and white signs that say "hands off my electric rates".
You guys love WASTING MONEY, don't you?
They need to be electric blue and white signs… With a lightning bolt through the capital NO part.
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