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Monday, October 25, 2010

Madison Common Council Walkout Shows Grade School Mentality

The "walkout/protest" to Ald. Thuy Pham-Remmele shows lack of good judgment and tolerance to issues that may have been important (and quite likely were) to Alder Pham-Remmele. It could be that some of the items Thuy added directly affected some of the alders who walked out and they did not want the item on the agenda. I sincerely hope that the residents of Madison take the time to look into council procedures and the rights of an alder that were thought to have been so disruptive. Some topics that may have been troubling and the GAG is always a good place to start: http://www.cityofmadison.com/election/candidateResources/campaignFinance/2009/2010.cfm
http://gab.wi.gov/campaign-finance/registration-local
http://gab.wi.gov/forms/campaign-finance
Remember to make your voices heard with your votes!!
In a rare if not unprecedented move, several City Council members left a meeting early in apparent protest of a colleague, breaking a quorum and ending the meeting with business still on the agenda.
The walkout occurred just before 10 p.m. Tuesday, while Ald. Thuy Pham-Remmele was asking questions on one of a series of items she had placed on an agenda for council discussion.
Pham-Remmele often places multiple items on the agenda for discussion. Otherwise, the items would be approved with others on a single vote.
Three of 20 council members had excused absences from the meeting, and when four others left, attendance fell below the 14 required for a quorum.

MATC deserves priority this fall

Once again the Wisconsin State Journal gets it wrong. What they left out is that the $133 million is only HALF of the project. The other will total over $300 million and will add more than $45-$75 to the average property taxes. Let's ask ourselves: "When will the reckless tax increases stop?!!

Recession, in election year, is driver of tight budget, officials say

5% in more property taxes in this tough economy?! This budget is so full of wasteful spending and does not cut enough - instead - it adds. C'mon Dave - who are you fooling????

In a tough economy and election year, Mayor Dave Cieslewicz's proposed $247 million operating budget for 2011 offers the fourth lowest spending increase in 15 years.

The 3 percent property tax levy increase — slightly more than the 2.9 percent disclosed by the mayor's office on Monday — is the second lowest during that period, but it will increase taxes on the average $241,217 home by $93.45, or 4.8 percent.

The tight budget for 2011 results from three harsh economic years, not politics, said Cieslewicz, who has not announced a decision on whether to seek a third, four-year term this spring.

The election "doesn't really enter into my calculation much," he said.

Veteran Downtown Ald. Mike Verveer, 4th District, partially disagreed.

"This is an election year budget. No doubt about it," Verveer said of the low spending and tax increases. "But one difference now, we are dealing with a real recession in our community."

Small tax base, new costs