Excerpts from ChicagoTribune.com:
Harvey is now threatening to lay off nearly half of its police force and other essential workers, as a deepening political conflict unfolds in a city long plagued by high crime rates, corruption allegations, and financial instability. Mayor Eric Kellogg’s administration has informed union leaders that layoffs are imminent for employees in the police, fire, public works, and water departments.
For months, Kellogg has been locked in a power struggle with a majority of City Council members who have demanded greater transparency. The Tribune has uncovered that the town has lost millions of taxpayer dollars through questionable deals, including at least one that has drawn the attention of the FBI. With the deadline fast approaching—December 29—for the town to pass an ordinance determining property tax levies, the mayor warns that failure to act could lead to a severe budget shortfall.
Four out of six council members have refused to approve any financial measures, including the tax levy, until they get control over the committee structures they voted to establish earlier this year. They argue that without these oversight committees, they cannot properly monitor how taxpayer money is spent. And if it means blocking the tax levy, so be it.
“This isn’t the city’s money—it belongs to the taxpayers,†said Alderman Christopher Clark, one of the four dissenting members. “If we pass the levy and give the money to the mayor’s administration without knowing where it goes, especially after years of questionable spending, it would be irresponsible of us as elected officials to do so.â€
Kellogg, however, accuses the four council members of being obstructionists, claiming their actions are putting the town on the brink of financial collapse. According to his spokesman, Sean Howard, the mayor is not against the tax levy but believes the council is refusing to act for political reasons. He warned that the proposed cuts could reduce the number of sworn police officers from 72 to 36 and firefighters from around 40 to 20.
“The mayor supports the levy. He doesn’t want to lay anyone off,†Howard said. “This is on the four aldermen.â€
The two sides met behind closed doors Thursday but failed to reach a compromise on the committee structure. The council then rejected the tax levy ordinance. On Friday, Alderman Donald Nesbit told the Tribune that the council had offered a compromise: splitting control of the Finance and Economic Development committees. A Kellogg supporter would chair one, with two critics on the panel, while a critic would chair the other, with two supporters as members.
Clark, however, claims the council has a legal right to control the committees, which Kellogg refuses to honor. Now, he and his allies say the mayor wants them to vote on a $15 million tax levy without first reviewing it in committee.
This latest development is part of an ongoing political showdown. Kellogg’s opponents have sent letters to federal and state agencies, requesting investigations into alleged misconduct by the mayor’s administration. They also have a pending lawsuit alleging that the mayor and clerk have unlawfully prevented the council from exercising its oversight powers in a town with minimal financial transparency.
Thanks Dan
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