Raises for City Council, Two New Cop Cars among Budget Amendements

• $66,000 for two police cars.
• $10,000 to increase part time library staff to $9 per hour minimum (excluding part-time pages)
• $50,000 to fund 20 additional Head Start placements in lieu of Federal funding reductions
• $3,000 to "modify Building Official grade and step from a 36-1 to a 32-6"
• $6,000 to provide for incremental election year compensation for the Canvassers' Registrar (workload dramatically increases during election years)
• $3,000 to provide election year compensation for Board of Canvassers members
• $9,000 to provide for increase in City Council member stipend
• $13,837 to provide for part-time inspections front desk clerk.

Councilman Don Botts was the lone nay vote on the the council stipend and Head Start additions.

"A raise should be given by changing the ordinance," Botts said of the stipend increase, which will boost the annual stipend from $1,800 to $2,800. "Many employees of the city haven't seen raises in years."

For the Head Start vote, Botts said the "state and feds keep pushing costs for their programs down to the city" and "the city shouldn't pick up the slack."

Councilman Paul Archetto was the lone nay vote for the $13,837 for the part-time inspections front desk clerk.

Those additions were balanced by reductions in the following categories:

EXPENDITURE REDUCTIONS

• $15,000 from the City Council budget, specifically the "Orders of the City Council" line item.
• $43,070 from the police budget "to transfer police impact fees to the general fund to partially offset police station rent increase."
• $26,255 to adjust the budget to reflect the timing of a new police chief (a two month salary savings as the department is run by the State Police)
• $41,277 to reduce the budget for timing of hiring of a new police major.
• $6,500 to reduce the Public Works claims budget from $16,500 to $10,000.
• $6,500 to reduce the Fire Department claims budget (same as above)
• $7,635 to increase general fund revenue for transfer of the fiscal 2014 mooring fee fund balance.
• $4,600 to recognize fiscal 2015 mooring fees into the general fund.

A measure to slash parks and recreation playground attendant wages by $10,000 was rejected as council members felt it was too important for area children that attend camp and the summer teens who work there.

Another amendment occurred in the capital budget. The City Council opted to transfer $100,000 out of the $2 million reserved for infrastructure improvements and divert it into residential sidewalk repairs.

Because the bottom line of the budget has changed by a mere $12,000, Cranston residents should still see no tax increase — the third year in a row.

And it includes a provision that forgives the school district's last $1.3 million debt reduction payment, finally clearing the way for Cranston Schools to be liberated from the binds of a consent order and the Basic Education Plan, putting to rest a lengthy saga that began years ago after the district lost a Caroulo lawsuit and was forced to repay the city millions.

The budget is a reflection of a major turnaround of the city's finances thanks to collaboration between the city, unions, the school district and economic growth, Fung said, and the lack of a tax increase yet again comes as the city's bond rating just ticked upwards and the city is poised to fully fund its annual pension and other post-employment benefit payments next year.

Notable is the fact the council did not change the school's $140 million appropriation from the city, though council members might pressure the School Committee to implement specific programs that were cut after the Caruolo suit, such as the gifted program and middle school sports.