Councilman Tom Rose Seeks to Establish Local Budget Committee

Budget Committee Sought - Not the State Commission:

East Providence Incumbent city councilman Tom Rose, Ward Three, would like to see the city council establish a local budget committee "to remain pro-active on our finances." This committee would apparently be different from the recently retired state budget commission which took control of city finances and ordered the shut-down of many city street lights and even disallowed minor maintenance such as replenishing grass seed at the venerable Pierce Stadium.

"Looking to the City's continued budgetary success I will be submitting a resolution promoting the establishment of a Budget Committee," said Rose. "This Budget Committee would be composed of two City Council members who would meet on a monthly basis with the City Manager, Finance Director and Municipal Finance Adviser. The purpose of the Budget Committee would be to discuss current and forthcoming fiscal year expenditures and revenues. The basis for each meeting will be to track the City's progress on economic development issues and provide oversight on current and future budgetary expenditures," continued Rose.

Rose's plan would require that Manager Paul Lemont and staff immediately start working to submit a 3-5 year strategic-financial plan for the City. The budget committee would provide a monthly report to the Council during a regularly scheduled Council meeting. Rose and other incumbents along with Lemont have continued to cite recent progress in local economic trends. “This year the Council was able to prevent a .5 percent property tax increase as had been requested by the City Administration. We need to remain pro-active on our finances," added Rose. He went on to say that, “this type of financial leadership and professional scrutiny will provide us with the time needed to implement the proper course of action for the City's financial future while providing our taxpayers with transparency on financial issues." Rose will introduce his idea as a city council resolution at a council meeting.

Many local officials and city department heads have cited severe cutbacks in funding from the state budget commission as a major reason for postponed city property or program improvements. City Manager Lemont has openly disagreed with most of what the state commission did while in power. Since the state has left, with the exception of financial adviser Paul Luber, the city has slowly hired back personnel and restored other funding. The city has recently enacted the 2014-15 fiscal year budget with robust planning while instituting a zero percent tax hike. However, at least one long time former budgetary expert for the city and state has opined that after the council made further cuts on top of a zero tax increase budget, "they should have lowered the tax rate-not just have kept a zero percent increase. Surpluses can't be applied as they're indicating," said the source.

Noting the many anti-Budget Commission comments from various quarters, The Reporter asked Mayor Jim Briden if he feared the city was moving too quickly to reinstate many of the cuts that the state budget commission had made. "I hear what you're saying but I think we are moving along okay. I think the budget commission helped us a lot, that's true. This budget has no tax increase and a new 5k business tangible tax exemption. The Council really worked well together as a team. We made additional cuts at this second meeting with the purpose of looking ahead and fortifying our city's financial position a year from now," said Briden.

Councilman Rose still believes that the city is adhering to a state/city five year plan for budgeting. "While budgeting is always an arduous and sometimes difficult task the 2014-2015 budget process was both positive and transparent. The City Manager and City Administration provided a well crafted budget with funding necessary to maintain services, increases in areas of need and did this all while sticking to the State's 5 year plan for our City," said Rose. Rose also stated that the once neglected City Rainy Day fund "now contains over 10.8 million dollars. The City Council held two public budget hearings and ensured copies in paper and on the City's website were available for all to view," added Rose. A confident sounding Rose said that "the future is bright and East Providence is looking forward to many great years ahead." One thing that seems evident, is that the state budget commission was involved in helping East Providence mostly erase a multi-million dollar deficit. Rose and others believe that the city can "take it from here."