Syracuse.com reported that mayor Stephanie Miner said she slashed $15.3 million in city operating costs last year and plans more savings this year, but the city may drown anyway in the coming fiscal storm unless New York state comes to its aid.
In her second State of the City Address, delivered tonight at the Everson Museum of Art, Miner laid out optimistic plans for the future. But she also warned that Syracuse faces dire consequences if the state cannot help the city cut its personnel costs.
She made clear that she doesn’t expect more money from Albany. She expects reform. “Despite the aggressive steps my administration has taken to cut costs, we are beholden to Albany to help us right our fiscal ship,” Miner said.
The state provides more than half of the money to run Syracuse and its school district — $339 million out of a combined budget of $633 million. Miner anticipates a significant cut in state aid this year, but said Albany can make up for it with reforms.
Specifically, she called on state leaders to impose an emergency salary freeze on public employees, including municipal workers; to enact pension reforms that cut expenses; and to require arbitrators to weigh the impact on taxpayers when resolving disputes between the city and its unions.
Salaries and benefits account for at least 70 percent of the city’s costs. The state must “change the rules” so the city can bring those costs under control, Miner said following the speech. “If you can’t give us money, give us reform,” she said.
The mayor ruled out raising property taxes as a way to solve the city’s money troubles. “Our families cannot afford any further increases,” she said, noting that the average home in Syracuse is assessed at just $69,906.
Despite warning that the “day of reckoning” has arrived, Miner’s 40-minute speech offered an upbeat vision of new opportunities arising from crisis.
She outlined several initiatives under way that will help modernize city government and make it perform better, including:
• Miner’s administration has changed the way the city handles a federal Community Development Block Grant of more than $8 million. The city has cut back on the amount of money it uses for administrative costs, freeing up $1 million for housing initiatives. Grants will be awarded to a smaller number of targeted projects, rather than distributing money to a wide variety of nonprofit agencies. Details of this year’s grant proposal will be released by the city today.
• Miner is seeking bids for a private contractor to provide security at the airport instead of paying overtime to city police officers. The switch won’t save the city money, but it may help reduce costs for airlines and help lower fares, she said.
• The division of code enforcement will install new software to replace a cumbersome, paper-based case management system.
• The city will modernize the “city line” that residents call to report problems or request service, implementing new software for online requests and to enable tracking of results.
• Miner plans to undertake a “comprehensive sustainability plan” that will contain strategies to enhance urban forestry, stormwater management, alternative energy, green building and other environmental goals.
• The City of Syracuse Facebook page and YouTube channel were unveiled Thursday. Miner said the city will use social media to provide timely information about water main breaks, trash pickups and street closings, among other things. Videos also will be posted online.
During the past year, Miner said, she has taken significant steps to cut personnel and to reduce overtime costs. More than 180 jobs have been vacated through budget cuts and an early retirement program, yielding annual savings of $7 million.
During 2010, non-uniformed overtime expenses were reduced $1.1 million, almost 30 percent, she said. Police overtime also was cut by $1.1 million. Firefighter overtime increased because of vacancies in the department, which produced a net savings.
Miner was greeted with a standing ovation by a crowd of roughly 250 people, before and after the speech.
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