I am sending it along to you to read as news breaks about the Governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich. We need tough, suspicious reporters working for investigative print newspapers but they are disappearing before our eyes. What will replace them and catch the next crooked governor, mayor or even president? I need you thoughts on this important subject. Click here to read Mr. Malmo's important talk about the need for a strong investigative print media in a democracy
The Nashville house had 5 bedrooms, 4 baths, 4413 sq. ft. at a price of $499,900 with taxes of $3952.
The Chattanooga home was the same price with 4 bedrooms, 4 1/2 baths, 5710 sq. ft. at the same price with taxes of $3657.
The Memphis home was the same price with 4 bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths, 4008 sq. ft. with taxes of $7200.
This illustrates the problem we have here in Memphis with high property taxes which continues to drive people out of Memphis to other locations. We need to lower propety taxes if we are to compete with others areas of Tennessee and the Mid South.
Recently I talked to people at Shelby County and they are talking about funding this liability up to possibly $20 million this year. The MLGW set up a fund in 1997 but has not contributed much if any since then. The City of Memphis in their 2009 budget has said that they are contributing $6 million dollars towards their unfunded liability of $823 million. (See attached 2009 budget pages, page 2 of 4). This shows that they will not keep providing this benefit in the future and they have indicated that they will cut this benefit soon. There is no way we can afford these promises and it is time now to tell the truth to the present and future retirees so that they can make other arrangements for their health care in the future.
POLITICAL DIVISION OPEB UNFUNDED LIABILITY City of Memphis $823,000,000 MLGW $709,000,000 Shelby County $353,000,000 Memphis City Schools $1,250,000,000 Total $3,125,000,000
While this meets the letter of the law, it does not satisfy the spirit of transparency. If you will look at the attachment you will see that there are three ordinances that affect your pocketbook. Ordinance 5261 raised your solid waste fee to $20.55 from $19.00 per month. Ordinance 5263 asked the property tax rate to be set to $4.01 per $100 (per the Mayor) of assessed value. This was later lowered by cutting the school funding. Ordinance 5264 got a unanimous vote to raise the pensions of City retirees by up to 3% depending on when they retired.
All of this information needs to be readily available to the public at the same time that it is available to the City Council. Just publishing it in the Business Journal and the Daily News is not sufficiently transparent to the tax payers who have to pick up the bill for the garbage and the pension increases. We need all pending ordinances and passed ordinances posted on the City website in advance of their consideration by the City Council and all final passed ordinances posted to a City website archive. The taxpayers need the same information that is provided to their elected representatives in advance of their votes.
Click here to read the ordinances that raised your garbage fee and increased your pension costs and who voted for the increases
Well you might get some comfort (maybe not) that the various pension funds for the City of Memphis, Shelby County and the MLGW are also down. I have asked these three organizations for a report on current values and have received two answers and that from Shelby County and the MLGW. I must say that the openness of Shelby County at the direction of Mayor Wharton and the MLGW at the direction of Jerry Collins has been very good. As usual, the City of Memphis, no doubt at the direction of the Mayor, is slow and difficult and I have received nothing to date.
The County and the MLGW reports are attached. Shelby County is reporting through September 30, 2008 down 17.2% YTD and probably another 10% for the month of October which was a bad month for everyone. Down 27% in this market is not bad compared to 35% for the Dow. Their investments seem well diversified and the management fees seem reasonable considering the size of the portfolio. The MLGW report is even better as they are down 12.4% year to date through September and probably another 9 or 10% in October. I have attached both reports.
The only information I have on the City portfolio at this time comes from the 2007 CAFR (Comprehensive Annual Financial Report). I have attached a copy of that report and there are several things that could cause some concern. They had $117 million in collateralized mortgage obligations, $148 million in mortgage backed pool securities, $110 million in real estate and $15 million in high yield bond funds. All of these investment categories took a real hit in the latest meltdown. Hopefully the fund did not but I will report when I get the information.
While I was talking to several County officials about the retirement in general and particularly about the OPEB (Other Post Employment Benefits) unfunded liability, they said that the County was planning a substantial contribution this year in order to begin a trust fund to fund these promises made to retirees. The MLGW set up such a fund in the past but has made no additional contributions since setting up the fund. The City of Memphis has done little in this area to date.
The County has a policy of requiring employees to purchase Medicare part A so that Medicare becomes their primary health insurance when they retire and this cuts the OPEB costs substantially. However a big problem is that many retirees are under the age of 65 and this is one of the big costs for retiree health care. Pension reform, at a minimum, should address this early retirement rule in order to cut costs. 25% of retirees are under the age of 65. Many retirees who are not eligible for Medicare either due to age or not having contributed to Medicare during their working career are eligible because their spouse has Medicare. My overall impression is that the County and MLGW (under Jerry Collins) are well run. The City of Memphis and the Memphis School System are the problem and badly need budget, personnel and structural reform and a commitment to transparency and openness.
Click here to see the latest update on the Shelby County pension fund
Click here to see the latest update on the MLGW pension fund
Click here to see the structure of the City of Memphis pension fund from the 2007 CAFR. The latest update has not been reported yet to the watchdog
PENSION REFORM IN MEMPHIS AND SHELBY COUNTY
With the help of many friends, I am in the process of creating an organization called MEMPHISSHELBYREFORM. The purpose of this organization will be to educate taxpayers in the area of needed reforms in our City and County governments. The only way to slow down or reverse the decline of Memphis and Shelby County is to push for reform in government aimed at the efficient use of our limited tax money.
I will be posting a series of proposed reform ideas and would appreciate your thoughts on them. I have already posted my thoughts on the Memphis School System.
Today I would like to look at our pension system that we have at the City of Memphis. The system in Shelby County government, the MLGW and other governmental agencies is similar.
Our system promises a defined benefit pension payment if you meet certain requirements. In a simplified report I have attached the general outlines of the City of Memphis system. The plan benefits vary depending on when you started, how long you worked and whether you are a policemen or firefighter or a general employee. But generally you can earn a pension up to 72-1/2% of average monthly compensation. The employees contribute to this system which is generally matched by the city of Memphis.
Most private sector employees who work for private for profit companies do not have a defined benefit plan. Rather they generally have a defined contribution plan like a 401K. The difference is that the public pension plan is a legal obligation on the taxpayers of Memphis and Shelby County. This is a huge difference.
What I propose as a reform is that for future employees of the City of Memphis, MLGW and Shelby County we go to a 401K type plan where we are sure of the cost of the plan each year and are not obligating ourselves for a future payment from our tax stream that we may or may not be able to pay. I am not talking about taking anything away from current employees as they would be grandfathered into the current plan.
Another big part of the promises that politicians have made to current public employees concerns the post retirement medical and life insurance benefits where generally the taxpayers pay 70 to 75% of the medical premiums after retirement. This is a huge benefit and unfortunately the politicians have not been funding this promise. The current unfunded liability of Memphis, Shelby County, the MLGW and the Memphis City Schools is $3.125 BILLION DOLLARS. That is BILLION, NOT MILLION. The government is requiring that these organizations put this unfunded liability on their balance sheets starting next year. This huge unfunded debt will make borrowing money much more expensive as the balance sheets will look much different. Realistically, the taxpayers cannot meet this obligation and the politicians are already talking about cutting this benefit which is not a legal obligation.
The whole point of my reform plan is this. Why should the average taxpayers who works in the private business sector offer more to public employees than they are offered in the for profit private sector. Politicians always manage to feather their nest at the tax payers expense. The truth is that all taxes come from a for profit business and without business profits, there would be no money available for any public sector employee. Click here to read what is in the City of Memphis pension plan that gives a defined benefit to the retirees
Local politicians have been talking about consolidating our City and County governments for years but nothing has been done. Therefore I started investigating this subject and as a start I have come up with some interesting statistics by comparing on one hand the combined Memphis and Shelby County government employment figures with the already combined figures of Nashville which is called Metro Davidson government. You may remember the ex Mayor of Nashville, (Bill Purcell), who at a Rotary Club meeting stated that he hoped Memphis would never consolidate because he did not want Memphis to be more competitive with Metro Davidson for new residents and new businesses. The following are some interesting figures.
Population of Memphis and Shelby County 911438
Population of Metro Davidson 578698
Total Employees of Memphis and Shelby County 33570
Total Employees of Metro Davidson 16000
Employees per 1000 people for Memphis and Shelby County 36.83
Employees per 1000 people for Metro Davidson 27.6
School population of Memphis Schools 113000
School population of Shelby County Schools 45000
School population of Metro Davidson 74733
School employees for City of Memphis 17000
School employees for Shelby County 4243
School employees for Metro Davidson 8361
School employees per 1000 students for City of Memphis 150
School employees per 1000 students for Shelby County 94
School Employees per 1000 students for Metro Davidson 112
It is obvious where one big problem is and it is in the Memphis School System. This over $1 billion dollar taxzilla is nothing but a job factory where education results are secondary to providing employment. If we reduced the school employment to the same ratio employee ratio per student as the Shelby county school system, we could operate with 6328 less school employees. At an average of $45,000 each, this would save $284 million dollars per year. David Pickler (see attached report) reports a difference in cost per student for the Shelby County School system of $1344 less than the City School system. Calculated by this, we could save $151 million by running the City System as efficiently as the County system. He also points out that we definitely do not want to consolidate the well run County School system with the bloated and inefficient City School system. It is obvious that millions could be saved by reforming and cutting the Memphis School System. Reform needs to come to this school system and we need it now. I will report further this week and next on other possible local savings reforms. Click here to see what David Pickler has to say about the consequences of consolidation the Shelby County School system with the City of Memphis School System
In order to further check on the facts on the convention center, I obtained a copy of the Memphis Cook Convention Center Financial Statement dated June 30, 2007 which is attached. It was not easy to get this document even though it states in the latest 2007 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the City of Memphis and for Shelby County that the statement is available at 225 N. Main. It was not available and I finally had to get it from a friend who had some influence.
In going through the statement I noted that they exceeded the budgeted event days, attendance and rental revenue by a considerable amount. However, in spite of exceeding the budget figures, they managed to lose $3.5 million dollars. The interesting fact on the financial statement is that the City of Memphis and Shelby County governments contributed $3.2 million dollars to cover the loss. I have to wonder if Mr. Kane forgot about this contribution when he stated in his article that the Cook Convention Center is not costing the taxpayers any money.
Any revenue projections coming from CEOs of convention centers or consultants who have an interest in seeing a project go forward have to be taken with a large portion of salt as I have never seen a consultant with a negative report or a convention center CEO who did not want to expand his operation, regardless of the cost to the taxpayers.
Click here to download the financial statement of the Convention Center
With all the recent news about the Memphis city Council wanting to approve the Deputy Directors of the City of Memphis, I decided to start reviewing the personnel files of the top City of Memphis Administration executives. We all know about the Mayor and his qualifications so I am starting with Mr. Keith McGee, the CAO of the City of Memphis.
I will then go on to the Directors and Deputy Directors and post all the information on line. By the way, the City Council caved in on the proposed change to the City Charter that would have given them approval of Deputy Directors as well as the much more important one concerning approval of professional contracts which the Mayor now gives out as he alone decides.
I have attached Mr. McGees file and please note the following.
Page 2- This is the job description and requirements. Please note the minimum qualifications.
Pages 3 and 4- This is his job history and education.
Page 7- A salary of $143,903.76.
Page 40- Note the accumulated sick leave days of 235.5 days (47 weeks). Veteran City employees earn 2 -1/2 sick days per month which if not used, they can carry forward. This is 6 weeks (12 times 2.5= 30 days= 5 weeks)per year in addition to 5 weeks vacation, 11 holidays and 4 bonus days. Over 13 weeks per year when they might not be working. ATTENTION TAXPAYERS: DO YOU HAVE SIMILAR BENEFITS!!!
The city sets the educational and job requirements for these high paying jobs. Apparently they accept internet degrees from anywhere and rate them the same as degrees for classrom colleges and universities. Then this makes the applicant qualified, according to the city, for the job. This whole world of taxpayers funded salaries and benefits needs to be reviewed and compared to for profit businesses in Memphis and Shelby County. Click here to see the personnel file of Keith McGee, the CAO of the City of Memphis
First of all regardless of where it is, it makes no financial sense at all. The Mayor and Kevin Kane talk about keeping up with the Jones (read Nashville). They are talking about a $600 million dollar new Nashville convention center which has been proposed but at this point it is still just talk. At least in Davidson County they have a provision in their charter that there will be NO PROPERTY TAX INCREASE WITHOUT VOTER APPROVAL. Naturally we do not have such a provision in either our City or County charter, although I proposed that when I ran for City Council.
This is just a warning to beware of Greeks bearing gifts, or Mayors promising development without risks to your pocketbooks. I have also attached two newspapers articles about similar no risk Tourist Development Zone financial deals in Chattanooga, Knoxville and Sevierville. Have a nice week.
Click here to see where Herenton wants the proposed new $600 million dollar convention center to be located
Click here to read about the Sevierville project. Sevierville has a $39 million dollar operating budget but is on the hook for $180 million in development costs
Click here to read about the downtown development in Chattanooga using TDZ bonds
HAS ANYONE PAID ANY ATTENTION TO THE OVER $3 BILLION UNFUNDED OPEB LIABILITY LAIBILITY FOR RETIREE HEALTH CARE PROMISES MADE BY THESE POLITICIANS? OUR DEBT AS A PERCENTAGE OF THE LEGAL DEBT LIMIT HAS RISEN FORM 50% IN 1998 TO 75% IN 2007.
We are now seeing a rush of deals being put forward by local developers. What they are saying in their sales pitch is that This building or this area is dead and we can bring it back at no risk to the taxpayers. Is that true?
I want to concentrate on the Pyramid deal as this is the current one that is being promoted by the City and the County.
After reading the Development Agreement, the following is a list of my thoughts on this agreement which need to be addressed before we proceed with approval.
We need an accounting of all the current tourist development zone (TDZ) bonds and what portion of the increased income tax stream takes precedence over the Bass Pro deal. I talked to the State of Tennessee Department of Revenue concerning TDZ financing and he said that they start with a base of taxes in the TDZ zones and that only the increases over the base goes to pay the TDZ bonds. The state portion base is increased by the average sales tax increase for the whole county (not just the TDZ) and therefore only the tax portion over the average increase goes to pay off the bonds. They pointed to several TDZ deals in Tennessee that had zero increase in the TDZ tax rebate due to their average increase in sales tax receipts not being greater than the county average increase.
The next thing that needs to be done is to survey other similar tourist development zone (TDZ) deals around the country that have been in effect for at least five years to compare terms of agreement and to see how the initial promises made in fact turned out such as sales, new tourists, sales taxes, etc. I have attached an article about a similar deal in Texas that was done by a competitor of Bass Pro. Also I have attached a list of Bass Pro and Cabela stores.
Herenton and Lipscomb claim in the document that Under the terms of the Development Agreement, local government would have no financial risk or local government funding in the Pyramid redevelopment project. Bass Pro Shops would act as developer and in that role, it agrees to meet or exceed a 30 percent target for minority-owned or women-owned businesses. However they fail to state that the bonds that would be issued in a TDZ project are full faith and credit bonds and that if the additional tax income is not there, then the taxpayers of Memphis and Shelby County are on the line as they are for all the other downtown projects financed by TDZ bonds.
Bass Pro gets a large tax credit which means that they will pay less federal income taxes. And yet they are competing with Walmart and other smaller sports and clothing goods stores in the area that pay property taxes and income taxes. Is that fair? We need to hear from these people.
The agreement calls for the City and County to complete a title search and review of the surrounding site as well as those parcels of land which may be beneficial to the success of the project. This raises the question of emminent domain similar to the Kelso case and the prospect of the City and County taking property away from owners by emminent domain.
Finally, as in the past, if we decide to go ahead with the deal, we must be assured that we hold our investment at no more than the $30 million plus the remaining debt. I can envision a scenario where we start on front end infrastructure work and invest a lot of money and then they pull out and say the market is not right, goodbye. We need an arrangement that we are protected by a clause that makes Bass Pro guarantee payment for these expenditures if they pull out during the construction period. Our history here in Memphis is to walk into a deal and once we get involved, we have to go forward when unexpected things happen. Look at the Convention Center expansion.
Click here to read about similar deals in Texas involving Bass Pro and a competitor, Cabela
Click here to see where Bass Pro and Cabela have stores in the United States
Click here to go to the Pyramid/Bass Pro plan
Also I have attached a copy of the Bass Pro meeting with the County Commission. Pay particular attention to the questions from Mike Ritz and Steve Mulroy who are trying to get answers to the inside workings of this complicated deal. Also look at the testimony of Charles Carpenter, a local attorney and good friend of the Administrations who has gotten a lot of bond work on all these deals and is remembered in connection with MLGW bonds and Larry Thompson. One last thing is an article I have attached talking about TIF (Tax Incremental Financing) deals in Texas involving a competitor of Bass Pro.
This whole area of TIFs in Memphis is growing and should be looked at closely. Politicians are selling TIF financing as a no risk way to development, that is, no risk to the taxpayer. In any deal like this you have to ask Cui Bono, Who Benefits.
Clearly Bass Pro benefits. They put up very little money on the front end and they can pull out without paying very much. If the project goes forward, they get huge tax benefits through the New Market Tax Credits thereby paying much less in Federal Income Taxes on profits. The favored developers and landowners downtown benefit by increased traffic and business and possible increases in land value. The favored attorneys benefits through legal business and bond business, like Charles Carpenter.
Do the taxpayers benefit? Possibly, but the property does not pay any property taxes. Sales taxes will be used to pay off the bonds and due to the Tourist Development Zone agreements, additional sales taxes will go to pay off other downtown zone bonds. Looking at the latest City of Memphis Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, which I have attached, you will see that sales tax collections that go to the general fund revenues have decreased significantly over the last ten years. This is probably due to the diversion of these tax revenues to cover the downtown and other TIF and TDZ (Tourist Development Zone) projects. We need a complete accounting in one place for all the obligations put on sales taxes in these various TIF and TDZ areas so that we can know what our true bond obligations are and why sales taxes receipts for the general fund are dissapearing.
What about the other businesses in Memphis and Shelby County who sell products that are competitive to Bass Pro? They do not have the political clout of a Bass Pro, Target or WalMart and therefore they have to pay property taxes. If they make a profit, they have to pay federal income taxes at the full rate.
Finally, why are we in this situation? It is because of the ill conceived contract that the City and the County signed for the FedEx Arena. That contract made the Pyramid useless and a silver elephant. I remember Mayor Herenton saying that he had to sign the contract because Hoops was to be made responsible for the maintenance and possible losses of the Arena. But if anyone read the contract, they would see that the one of the hookers in that contract was in Section 8, Arena Repairs and Maintenance. Section (a) states that during the term of the agreement, the City and County will be responsible for and, at its cost, shall make all Capital Repairs as shown in Exhibit B (Heating and Air Conditioning, roof, etc). In other words, the big ticket items are to be paid by the tax payers, not HOOPS. HOOPS is responsible for (1) making all minor repairs, (2) undertake normal and routine maintenance, (3) provide adequately trained janitorial, maintenance and support staff and keep the Arena in a safe, uncluttered, clean, sanitary and sightly condition and (4) provide security for the Arena Complex 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In addition the City and County have to pay for all fire insurance policies and other perils. Also HOOPS has a way to get out of the agreement after 10 years if Memphians do not buy enough seats under Section 31, EARLY TERMINATION RELATING TO SHORTFALLS, and the clock is running. Also, of course, the contract did not allow any functions at the Pyramid. Some deal.
I ask that you look over this information and let me have your thoughts. Many of you have written me on other subjects and I am aware that you are a lot smarter than I am and I would appreciate your thoughts and expertise. I will hold your comments confidential unless you say otherwise. Click here to see the Bass Pro presentation to the County CommissiionClick here to read an article about TIF financing involving BAss Pro and a competitor in TexasClick here to see how sales tax collections in Memphis have gone down and property taxes have gone up over the last ten years
Take a look at the resumes of Yalanda McFagdon and Tony Elion.
Yalanda McFagdon:
Page 4- She got raised from $72,000 as Executive Director of Second Chance to this $100,000 job. On page 5 you will see that the funding grant for second chance ended. Second chance is a federally funded program intended to give at risk people another chance, a very worthy objective. However, who has ever audited or honestly reviewed the effectiveness of this and the thousands of other similar programs. These programs certainly give the Mayors a great opportunity to employ friends and cronies.
On page 10 see a letter to WW noting that the job title for Yalanda should be changed from WORKSORCE DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST to SPECIAL PROGRAMS COORDINATOR at a salary increase. Who ever said that job titles are not important. At City Hall, they mean big salary increases.
On page 12 you will see the re-employment form in 2000 after serving 5 months in prison in 1999 for concealing $70,000 in drug-dealing proceeds and interfering with a federal search. Previous to serving time, she was head of Herentons bodyguard detail.
Tony Elion:
His resume is not nearly so colorful as Yalandas but I do have to credit Ms. McFagdon for persisting in her education.
Here again, he was involved in protecting the Mayor. Apparently this is the path to promotion. Could it be that they are both potential witnesses to events in our government? Who knows. But protecting the Mayor gets a 5% salary bonus for what could be hazardous duty service. (See page 5).
I cant wait to read the other personnel files from our Directors and Deputy Directors. Click here to see parts of the personnel file of Yalanda McFagdon, your new Deputy Director of Public ServicesClick here to see parts of the personnel file of Tony Elion, your new Deputy Director of Solid Waste
I have researched the information about Nashville, Chattanooga and Knoxville. I have attached the portions of the charters for Nashville, City of Knoxville, Knox County and the City of Chattanooga. Hamilton County (where Chattanooga is) has no charter and operates under state law. (They have consistently rejected a County Charter form of government).
The long and the short of it is that all of them allow citizen initiated petitions, all except the City of Memphis. Nashville requires the signatures of 10% of those who voted in the preceding general election. Knoxville is 25% of those who voted in the last Mayoral election. Knox County is 15% of those who voted in the last gubernatorial election (This lowering of the requirement passed by 79% in Knox County). Chattanooga is 25% of those who voted in the last mayoral election.
Enough said. We need this in our charter and we need a reasonable signature figure, not 15% of registered voters as is currently required in Shelby County. (By the way, the County Commission could and should lower this figure according to State law).
Here is what is currently approved by the Memphis Charter Commission to be put on the November ballot for the citizens to say yes or no.
1. Filling Vacancy in the Office of the Mayor: In the event of the Office of the Mayor becomes vacant, the City Council Chair, who will at that time have the title of Mayor Pro-Tem, shall serve as Mayor for up to 180 days following such vacancy, at which time the public shall elect a duly qualified person to serve the remaining unexpired term of the vacated office, provided that if no general or municipal election is scheduled to occur within 180 days of such vacancy, a special election shall be held within 90 days of such vacancy to elect a candidate to fill the Office of the Mayor through the end of the remaining unexpired Mayoral term.
2. Suspension from Official Duties: Any elected or appointed official charged with official malfeasance, shall be suspended with pay pending resolution of the charge.
3. Sale of Memphis Light Gas & Water: Any proposed sale of Memphis Light Gas and Water or any of its electric, gas, and/or water assets shall not be final until first approved by a majority of duly qualified voters in the City of Memphis.
4. Term Limits: With respect to all municipal elections held hereafter for the Office of Mayor, City Council, and City Court Clerk, no person shall serve more than 2 consecutive terms in any given office.
5. Staggered Terms: The candidates seeking election to the Memphis City Council shell be elected for a term of four (4) years, and may succeed themselves. For the first election held pursuant to this section, in order to establish staggered terms of office, the candidates from even-numbered districts shall be elected for a term of two (2) years, and the candidates from the odd-numbered districts shall be elected for four (4) years. For all subsequent selections, the City Council candidates will be elected to a four (4) year term. (This will be modified as the Charter Commission made a mistake about the two year term as they apparently want to put the City Council election on even years rather than odd years to save election costs).
6. Instant Runoff Voting. There is another proposition that will be voted on this Thursday (August 21) and it is very important. It is the proposition to allow the citizen and voters of Memphis to file a citizen petition to put forward for the voters approval, a change or addition to the City of Memphis Charter. It will be something like the following.
Citizen Petitions to Amend Charter (This will be voted on this Thursday)
WHEREAS, it may be necessary for the citizens of the City of Memphis to propose amendments to the City Charter that are in the best interest of the citizens and which may not be promulgated by members of City Government.
Voters of the City may frame and proposed amendments to this charter. They may propose any such amendment by a petition addressed to the Council of the City and containing the full text of the proposed amendment. Any petition proposing a charter amendment must be filed with the City Clerk and must be signed by qualified voters of the city equal in number to at least 15 percent of the persons who voted in the city in the last gubernatorial election. The clerk shall immediately deliver it to the county election commission. When such petitions have been determined sufficient, the county election commission shall submit same to the voters of the county in accordance with this section.
The county election commission shall submit to the voters of the county any charter amendment proposed and delivered to them in accordance with the provisions of this section. A petition for recall, referendum or initiative shall be filed at least sixty (60) days before a general municipal or county election may be held on the question contained in such petition. The question contained in a petition filed less than sixty (60) days before an upcoming general municipal or county election will be placed on the ballot of the following general municipal or county election.
Click here to see the citizen petition clause for Metro Davidson
Click here to see the citizen petition clause for the City of Knoxville
Click here to see the citizen petition clause for Knox County
Click here to see the citizen petition clause for the City of Chattanooga
I have published 10 pages of this report below to give you some feel for the salary and benefit levels of this huge bureauracry that has a budget of over $1 billion dollars.
On page 1 you will see Classroom Teachers/K3 in a salary range from $45,000 to $55,000.
On page 2 you will see K3 teachers with Masters degrees in the range of $65,000.
On page 3 you will see non-union educational assistants in the $17,000 range.
On page 4 you will see some striving teachers who are defined in #9 below.
On page 5 you will see some teachers with Ph.Ds but not paid much better than the teachers with masters degrees.
On page 6 you will find ROTC instructors that are paid up to $75,000.
On page 7 you will see special education principals in the $90,000 range.
On page 8 you will find elementary school principals in the high $80,000 range.
On page 9 you will find High School principals at $100,000.
On page 10 are the totals for the first 1094 pages, some $637 million dollars and that is not the total which is over $700 million.
I have not had time to seek out those with salaries well over $100,000 but I did find Sybille S Noble, late of the Shelby County government as Chief Contracting Office at a salary of $143,655.
In looking at the ten pages I asked some questions about the codes and benefits and got the following answers.
1. Looking, for example, at page 1, the second line, classroom teachers, I notice two lines for each teacher. I assume that this is the range (low/high for this job). Is that correct?
Response: The top row is the current year salary for the employee based on an assumption that the employee works a full school year. In other words, it is not the actual amount paid; instead, just an annual projection. The second row is the projected salary for the 2008-09 school year based on contracted salary increases for the number of years of experience, education, and certification. It is not a low/high range for the job.
2. FICA is the 7.65% of salary that the division pays. The employee pays a matching amount.
3. Under retirement, this amount is what the MCS pays (about 6.23%) and I assume that the employee pays a matchding amount into the pension fund.
Response: In 2007-08, MCS paid 6.24% for certificated employees and 9.34% for non-certificated staff. The rate changes for 2008-09 and is factored in the projected amount. These dollars are the districts match. The employee must contribute a state mandated rate of 5%.
4. Under unemployment, this amount ($54) is what the MCS pays and there is no matching amount from the employee.
Response: Correct.
5. I notice that some employees have a BS degree and some have M A degree (masters?) but the M A get paid less. Is this a question of seniority or what?
Response: The difference is due to the years of service. You will notice on the top row for each employee that it begins with a salary grade and step which may read 300 10 indicating that this is a 10 month teacher with a BS degree and ten years of experience. If it reads 310 10, then it equates to a 10 month teacher with a MA degree and 10 years experience.
6. What does the last line (PCT) mean? Most have 1.0 but some have .94.
It means that 94% of the employees salary is charged to that particular coding (regular instruction). In this example, the other 6% is coded to project 040 BEP 2.0 for working 30 additional minutes each day (extended day).
7. Do the employees have the option to choose to have benefit deductions classfied as tax-exempt allowing contributions to be tax exempt from federal withholding tax? In other words health insurance premiums are deducted from salary pre tax.
Response: Our insurance is a cafeteria plan; and therefore, is tax exempt.
8. What does C and B indicate?
Response: C indicates that the employee has opted to be paid over a 12 month period (deferred payments) and B indicates that the employee has chosen to be paid in 10 months (normal work year).
9. What is the difference between a striving classroom teacher and a BS teacher?
In 2007-08, certain schools were identified by the state as requiring additional support and the new State BEP 2.0 funds were used to provide that assistance. These schools worked the extra 30 minutes a day and were paid for extended day.
10. What is a MA + 45 teacher that seems to be better paid than MA teacher? They have received so many hours of credit in a doctoral program but have not received the degree.
11. What is an Ed S degree teacher as opposed to the others?
Education Specialist degree, which is more than a masters but less than a doctorate.
12. Are educational assistants part time? What do they do? How many hours in a year do they work?
Many are considered part-time since they only work 4 hours per day, appx. 720 hours. Some work 5 hours, and others work a full school day. They assist teachers in the regular classroom while others assist with special education students.
13. How many hours in a year do full time teachers work?
Response: The school day is 7 hours, which includes lunch. The teacher is paid for 200 days (180 classroom days, 5 in-service, 4 administrative, 1 parent-teacher day, and 10 vacation days).
Click here to see some representative pages from the 1332 salary and benefit report of the Memphis City School employees
August 6, 2008 MEMPHISSHELBYREFORM I have been involved in open records requests and investigation of governmental activities and financial affairs for almost four years. These activities, lawsuits and internet postings have been a solo activity and I think have had some positive effects on local government. However the time has come to expand the operation and to enlist the support of the most important and underserved group in this City, County, State and Country, the taxpayers. The Democrat and Republican parties are primarily interested in political power to advance their political and economic agendas which are not always in the best interests of the taxpayers. For instance, they cater to the public employee and teachers unions because they are a large voting block with an agenda that many politicians are afraid to oppose although that agenda is not always in the best interest of the taxpayer who pays all the bills. Therefor it is obvious to me that the taxpayers need an organization around which they can rally and make their thoughts known and make the politicians listen and act on those thoughts. I envision and plan to organize a group that will work for the following initial objectives. A government that is transparent, open and accessible and that posts all financial and personnel information on the internet (e.g. all RFPs and bid results with winners and losers of the bids shown and explanation of why the winner was chosen, all personnel information with job descriptions, job qualifications, salaries, benefits, perks, promotions, all financial information with budgets and budget changes, all contracts before and after signing and all other relevant information that affects government efficiency). A government whose employees are paid at the same level of salaries and benefits as private for profit employees for similar job skills. (e.g. very few private for profit employees receive a defined benefit pension plan (they normally have a 401K) and very few get a generous health insurance plan after retirement paid mostly by their former employers. A City and County charter that allows citizen initiated petitions to change the laws under which they are governed and taxed. That petition right should include a level of signatures that is no higher than that required in the Tennessee Constitution for a Charter Commission, Article 11, Section 9) which is 10% of those voting in the most recent general municipal election. In 1997 the Tennessee Legislature changed this requirement for home rule cities and counties from 10% as above to 15% of registered voters thus raising the bar because they do not want the taxpayers to have a voice in their government. An open records law that requires the requested information to be supplied in electronic format (normally a spreadsheet or a word document). I have found over the last four years that the requested information normally starts out as a spreadsheet and then they give me printed copies of the spreadsheet and charge for these copies. This prevents me from having the electronic spreadsheet which makes it much easier to analyse the data. (a great example of this is my recent request to the Memphis School System for all salary and benefit information on the 16,500 MCS system employees. They let me look at over 1100 pages of the information which obviously came from a spreadsheet. I asked for the electronic information and they have not responded yet to my multiple requests. Under the current open records laws the person requesting the information is not entitled to ask for a particular electronic format even if it is obvious that it is available in that format and even if it would be cheaper than making paper copies. The only conclusion is that they do not want to make it easy for the taxpayers to know what is going on. A great example of this is the recent effort by Representative Brian Kelsey and Senator Paul Stanley that the election commissions in counties, with larger populations (e.g. Shelby, Knox, Hamilton and Davidson), be required to furnish their political contribution and expenditure reports in the same electronic format that state candidates adhere to. Actually it is easier to do so when compared to the current system of paper records. Moreover it certainly makes it easier to find out who contributes to whom and how the money is spent. Sound like a good idea? Of course it is except for one thing. THE LOCAL POLS DON'T WANT YOU TO KNOW WHO IS CONTRIBUTING TO WHOM AND HOW MUCH. Therefore, despite good faith efforts to get it passed, HB2929 died. Therefore I have started an effort around the formation of MEMPHISSHELBYREFORM. I plan to get 50 initial founders at $500 each (I already have commitments from 18 taxpayers). I am applying for the formation of a 501C3 non profit organization and will then use the initial capital to solicit 500 members at $50 each and then 5000 members at $20 each. The money will be used for educational and research efforts to point out to the public and the media inefficient and questionable government practices. The exposure of this information and the amount of backing from thousands of members will cause our elected officials to legislate the reforms necessary to bring efficient government and lower taxes to the people who pay for everything, the taxpayers. I ask for your help in this effort. I have attached an article that appeared yesterday in the Memphis Daily News concerning the formation of this new organization. JOIN A GROUP THAT HAS THE TAXPAYERS' INTEREST AS ITS CENTRAL CONCERN Click here to read the Memphis Daily News article about the formation of MEMPHISSHELBYREFORM
Click here to see the Memphis school square footage for the 4 zones
Click here to see the student enrollment by school and grade
Click here too see the student enrollment by school, grade and ethnic breakdown
Click here to see the data about the schools in Zones 1,2,3 and 4 schools by name with acerage, buildings, classrooms, square footage, portable classroom numbers and square footage
December 6, 2007 I attended the meeting of the Memphis Charter Commission yesterday at City Hall. It was a very interesting meeting and run very efficiently by the new Chairman of the Charter Commission, City Councilman Myron Lowery. The highlight of the meeting was the plea by Carol Chumney to the Charter Commission to fix the City Charter concerning what happens if the Mayor, for whatever reason, does not finish his four year elected term.
The charter currently says that if that happens, then the chairman of the city council becomes Mayor for 20 days. During that 20 day period, the City Council can elect a successor to the Mayor who will then serve until the end of the term. If they do nothing, then the Chief Administrative Officer of the City becomes Mayor. Here is the language from the City Charter.
In the case of the death, resignation, inability for any reason to serve, or recall of the Mayor or his removal from the City, his office shall be occupied by the Chairman of the Council for a period not exceeding twenty (20) calendar days, during which period the Council shall elect a successor to the Mayor from among qualified persons not members of the Council at the time of such elections. Such elected person shall take office as Mayor immediately on election and shall hold office until his successor is elected or qualified, which office shall thereupon be filled in the same manner as heretofore provided for vacancies on the Council. In the event the Council shall fail to act within the twenty (20) day period, the Director of Administration [Chief Administrative Officer] * shall fill said office until such time as the members of the Council shall have elected a successor or until the next general or municipal election.
Ms. Chumney mentioned rumors to the effect that this is what the Mayor has in mind as he starts his new term on January 1, 2008. (The rumors, as I understand them, are that A. C. Wharton would be selected by the new City Council). She urged the Charter Commission to correct this situation, with a new provision to be voted on in 2008, that would require a special election within 60 days from such vacancy in the Mayor's office.
Another interesting presentation was presented by County Commissioner Steve Mulroy who asked the Charter Commission to consider instant runoffs and runoffs for the six at large city council positions which do not currently have runoff provisions.
A number of reform minded Memphis citizens , including myself, have joined together to suggest some specific changes in the Memphis City Charter. We have asked thousands of taxpayers to email the Charter Commission members with these proposals. We feel that these changes will help to promote honesty, transparency and innovation in government and help to ensure efficiency in providing the services that taxpayers need and want.
These changes can be put before the voters in the Fall 2008 election by the existing Charter Commission and/or by the incoming Memphis City Council. The Charter Commission has been longing for citizen input. We have asked Memphis taxpayers to email the charter commission with these specific changes if they agree with them. We need the publics� help in this effort and are asking you to email the seven members of the Charter Commission immediately with any or all of the following proposed Memphis City Charter changes with which you agree. Also we ask you to forward this message on to your email friends in Memphis and ask them to do the same. We need to let the charter commission know that we want to have the opportunity to vote on these changes. Summary List of Possible Changes to the City Charter: 1. No Property Tax Increase Without Voter Approval 2. Online Access and Transparency for all Government Records 3. Eliminate City Council Conflicts with Municipal Boards and Commissions 4. No Sale of Memphis, Light, Gas and Water Without Voter Approval. Proportional Representation for MLGW Board. 5. Mayor and City Council Term Limits 6. Citizen Petitions to Amend Charter
Sample email to charter commission
To: sylvia.cox@memphistn.gov ,george.brown@memphistn.gov, willie.brooks@memphistn.gov,sharon.webb@memphistn.gov ,janis.fullilove@memphistn.gov, marsha.campbell@memphistn.gov,Myron.Lowery@memphistn.gov Subject: Memphis City Charter changes I would like to see on the 2008 ballot Dear Member of the Memphis City Charter Commission, I am a City of Memphis resident, a taxpayer and voter and I would like to see the Charter Commission include the following changes on the Fall 2008 citywide ballot for a 'yes' or 'no' vote on each of the items I list below. I wish each item to be voted on individually and each to stand on its own. I would appreciate your action to check these proposals, make sure that they are in the proper format and language and put them on the ballot for a citizen vote. No Property Tax Increases Without Voter Approval WHEREAS, the willingness and ability of citizens to bear the burden of tax increases should always be considered. Real property tax rates shall not exceed the maximum rate approved by the voters of the City of Memphis in a referendum. Such referendum may be authorized by the City Council no more than once in each calendar year pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated Section 2-3-204. The referendum shall read: 'The maximum real property tax rate for the City of Memphis shall be increased to:' followed by the rate. Voters shall be provided the two choices of FOR and AGAINST. The real property tax rates in effect as of October 4, 2007 shall be the maximum rates until after the first such referendum occurs." Online Access and Transparency for All Government Records WHEREAS, the citizens of Memphis recognize that openness and transparency in all government affairs is the best assurance of ethical conduct. All financial information of the City of Memphis, the Memphis Light Gas and Water Division and all entities receiving taxpayer money from the City of Memphis shall be held to be subject to the Tennessee Open Records Laws. All financial and related information shall be put on the internet within thirty days after becoming available to the City of Memphis and all related divisions for public access. This shall include but not be limited to job descriptions and requirements, personnel files (excepting information that federal laws require to be private), salaries, benefits, pension information, contracts, requests for proposals (RFPs), responses to RFPs, winning and losing bids, reasons for selection of wining bids and all job postings, selections for job postings and reasons for selections. Eliminate City Council Conflicts with Municipal Boards and Commissions WHEREAS, the government of the City of Memphis has wide-ranging oversight and fiscal responsibilities related to independent citizen boards and commissions, and WHEREAS, proposals from those boards and commissions are voted on by the Council of the City of Memphis. No more than one serving current member of the Memphis City Council shall be eligible to serve on any one of the various boards, commissions or committees of boards or commissions for which the citizens of Memphis would otherwise be eligible to serve. Furthermore, the City Council member so designated to serve shall serve as an observer and shall have non-voting status during service on the board or commission. Any one City Council member may serve as a non-voting observer on more than one board or commission No Sale of Memphis, Light, Gas and Water Without Voter Approval. Proportional Representation for MLGW Board. WHEREAS, the Memphis, Light, Gas and Water Division of City Government is a municipal utility that serves much of the metropolitan area, and WHEREAS, the citizens of the City of Memphis wish to ensure the sustainable and balanced governance of the MLGW Division. The Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division Board of Commissioners shall consist of nine (9) members appointed and approved as follows: Four members shall be appointed by the Mayor of Memphis and approved by a majority vote of the Memphis City Council. Two members shall be appointed by the Shelby County Mayor and approved by a majority vote of the Shelby County Board of Commissioners. One member shall be appointed by the Mayor of Germantown Tennessee and approved by a majority vote of the Board of Aldermen of Germantown. One member shall be appointed by the Mayor of Collierville Tennessee and approved by a majority vote of the Board of Aldermen of Collierville. One member shall be appointed by the Mayor of Bartlett Tennessee and approved by a majority vote of the Board of Aldermen of Bartlett. In addition it shall consist of such subordinate officers and employees as may be selected by said board of light, gas and water commission. The Memphis Light Gas & Water Division or any part of the Memphis Light Gas and Water Division shall not be sold without a voter referendum approved by a majority of the voters of Shelby County. Mayor and City Council Term Limits WHEREAS, it is deemed to be in the best interest of the citizens of Memphis, the electoral process, the continuous revitalization of ideas in the government of the City of Memphis and continuity in the administration of City government. No elected official, including the Mayor and any Member of the Council of the City of Memphis, shall serve more than two full consecutive or non-consecutive terms as defined in the Charter of the City of Memphis. The seven (7) members elected from districts shall be elected the first Thursday following the first Tuesday in October, beginning October 2011, for four-year terms. The six (6) members elected to multi-member districts 8 and 9 shall be elected to a special three-year term on the first Thursday following the first Tuesday in October 2011 and take office January 1, 2012. The next election for the six multi-member districts will be held the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, beginning November 2014. This date shall automatically adjust to reflect any change in the date of federal elections to ensure that this election coincides with it. The elected members will take office January 1, 2015 and serve full four-year terms. All subsequent elections for the six multi-member districts will take place in four-year intervals. Citizen Petitions to Amend Charter WHEREAS, it may be necessary for the citizens of the City of Memphis to propose amendments to the City Charter that are in the best interest of the citizens and which may not be promulgated by members of City Government. Voters of the City may frame and proposed amendments to this charter. They may propose any such amendment by a petition addressed to the Council of the City and containing the full text of the proposed amendment. Any petition proposing a charter amendment must be filed with the City Clerk and must be signed by qualified voters of the county equal in number to at least 15 percent of the persons who are registered to vote in the City of Memphis. The clerk shall immediately deliver it to the county election commission. When such petitions have been determined sufficient, the county election commission shall submit same to the voters of the county in accordance with this section. The county election commission shall submit to the voters of the county any charter amendment proposed and delivered to them in accordance with the provisions of this section. A petition for recall, referendum or initiative shall be filed at least sixty (60) days before a general municipal or county election may be held on the question contained in such petition. The question contained in a petition filed less than sixty (60) days before an upcoming general municipal or county election will be placed on the ballot of the following general municipal or county election. The City shall provide notice of the election on the petitioned question(s) not less than twenty (20) days nor more than thirty (30) days before the day of the election.
