Only in Government Does This Make Sense
The Albany (GA) city government asked its employees to cut back (read “reduce the cost of government”) in the midst of the economic downturn. They were so successful in reducing spending that the city realized a $720,000 surplus. City manager Al Lott decided that an appropriate use of the extra cash was Christmas bonuses for city employees (read “increase the cost of government”):
The bonuses will cost the city about $582,000 and if approved at next week’s regular meeting, will be paid out December 18th.
The $720K savings represents about 5% of what Albany collected from property owners in 2008. Rather than return the benefit of frugality to the people who paid the money in the first place, city leaders essentially eliminated the benefit by pouring the money back into government. (Yes, public employees are government.)
Minimizing the cost of government is nothing more than the reasonable service of government employees—in other words, they are just doing their job when they cut costs.
The Albany City Council should reject the holiday bonus and return the surplus to the taxpayers in the form of a lower millage rate next year.
