MCEA Issues Statement in Response to County Council Report

This morning, the Montgomery County Council's Office of Legislative Oversight issued a Report entitled Achieving a Structurally Balanced Budget in Montgomery County. The report compiles a vast amount of data and information. Yet, of the more than 200 pages in the report, only seven pages are devoted to analyzing the county's revenue issues and only three pages are devoted to the county's burgeoning debt service expenses.

So what's the rest of the report about? Employee salaries and benefits. In contrast to the paucity of options concerning county revenues and county debt expenses, the report contains dozens of recommendations for cutting employee salaries, cutting employee health insurance, and cutting employee retirement plans.

MCEA released the following press statement in response to the OLO Report, and will be providing additional information in the coming weeks to the public and to the County Council in response to the clear agenda of targetting public employees to solve the county's budget problems.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, December 07, 2010
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Doug Prouty (301)294-6232

MCEA Statement on Release of OLO Recommendations

There is no doubt that Montgomery County, like the rest of the state and the nation, faces continuing difficult economic times. Montgomery County’s educators – like millions of other Americans – have felt this directly. Over the last two years employees of the Montgomery County Public Schools have sacrificed over $100 million dollars in scheduled cost-of-living increases and longevity steps. We have also faced increased workloads as MCPS has increased class sizes and cut back on staffing levels. We understand that everyone must share in the burden of these tough times.

It is a mistake to blame the current budget crisis on public employees. It is wrong to do so at the federal level, and it is wrong to do it here. The average benefit in the teacher pension system is just $17,484 a year – hardly an extravagance after 30 years of service to our students.

“The Montgomery County Council is misguided if they believe that the can cut their way out of the current problem”, said Doug Prouty, President of the Montgomery County Education Association. “Cuts along cannot solve the county’s budget shortfall.”

Montgomery County voters did not elect the Tea Party, and they do not expect the members of the County Council to act like the Tea Party.

It will take a fair balance of spending cuts and revenue increases to get through the current budget problems. It is time for political leadership willing to share that honest truth with county residents.

Montgomery County remains the tenth wealthiest county in the nation. Surely we have the wherewithal to find the right balance of solutions so that we are not shortchanging the next generation, nor shortchanging the poor, the elderly and the neediest amongst us.

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