Jul 16, 2009 1:27 pm US/Eastern
I-Team: Discretionary Funds Get The Axe
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez unveiled his latest budget proposal that includes deep cuts across the board, job cuts, and a property tax increase.
CBS
As Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez undertook the daunting task of trying to close a $400 million budget deficit, he looked at job cuts, property tax increases, and the elimination of the County commission's discretionary funds.
Each commissioner, as well as the mayor, has $250,000 to distribute to community groups in any way they want. The funds have long been criticized as a political slush fund and were the subject of a CBS4 I Team investigation earlier this year.
"I'm making that recommendation. I don't know if the commission will approve it or not, but it is just one of those things that was out there," said Mayor Alvarez.
Critics claim commissioners can use the funds to curry favor with groups who in turn help keep them in office.
"Quite frankly having discretionary funds myself, they can be utilized for a lot of good. You can give them to organizations that do a lot of good in our community and get money to them in an expedited fashion to help them serve our community," Alvarez said.
In the past, Alvarez has proposed cutting the funds only to have commissioners vote him down. This year, with layoffs and tax increase possible, commissioners appear more willing to consider it.
"As it relates to discretionary funds, all of that is on the table," said Commission Chairman Dennis Moss. Other Commissioners, like Katy Sorenson are ready for the funds to be done away with as well.
"I've always been fine with getting rid of discretionary funds. I think they should go through a process and especially when we are scrutinizing money as we are this year, they can go," Sorenson said.
And while cutting the funds would save the county $3.5 million and provide good P.R. with taxpayers; it will not fill the county's $400 million budget deficit.
"Discretionary funds is just a tiny portion of that. We have much bigger fish to fry here and it is going to be a very difficult process," Sorenson said.
But, after years of keeping the discretionary funds in the budget, this may finally be the year the funds hit rock bottom.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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