HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC 1978-09-13 MinutesCITY OF MIAMI
40
SPECIAL
'COMMISSION
MINUTES
SPECIAL BUDGET WORKSHOP
OF MEETING HELD ON SEPTEMBER 13, 1978
PREPARED BY THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK
CITY HALL
RALPH G, ONGIE
CITY CLERK
MtNUTE8 br 8PECtAL MEET/MG Or Tilt
CITY COMMISSION 0f MIAMI, Ft80IbA
* * * * * *
On the 13th day of September, 1978, the City Commission
of Miami, Florida met in the Committee of the Whole Room, at
City Hall, 3500 Pan American Drive in said City in Special
Workshop Session to consider the proposed Appropriations
ordinance for Fiscal year 78-79.
The meeting was called to order at 9:13 O'Clock A.M. by
Mayor Maurice A. Ferre with the following members of the City
Commission present:
Commissioner Rose Gordon
Commissioner (Rev.) Theodore Gibson
Mayor Maurice A. Ferre
ABSENT:
Commissioner J. L. Plummer
Vice -Mayor Manolo Reboso
ALSO PRESENT:
Joseph R. Grassie, City Manager
R. L. Fosmoen, Assistant City Manager
Vince E. Grimm, Assistant City Manager
Howard V. Gary, Director Budget & Management
James E. Gunderson, Director of Finance
George F. Knox, City Attorney
Ralph G. Ongie, City Clerk
Matty Hirai, Assistant City Clerk
SPECIAL BUDGET WORKSHOP SESSION.
SEP 131978
Mr, Grassie: What we wanted to do today is to go through the
budget not to answer every question that you will have because 1
know that you have specific questions of departments and we have
two full days set aside for you to meet with departments to talk
about individual programs. What I would like to do to start with is
to nsk Howard Gary to stand, to put some boards up and give you a
quick overview of the budget. Then 1 would like to go through all
the sumaaiy schedules with you and :.gee if we cangot to the point
where we're comfortable with the kind of information we have. So
if we could start with the boards that might he the quickest way
to get into an overview of it.
Mayor Ferre: Joe, you did tell the press that we were meeting on all
this so that nobody feels...
Mr. Grassie: It's published in the front of the building
Mayor Ferre: Okay.
Mr. Grassie: Along with all the other meetings.
Mayor Ferre: I know.
Mr. Howard Gary: What we'll try to do is give you an overview of the
the 1979 budget in view of the 1978 budget. Okay, the proposed budget
for 1979 for the General Fund is approximately 97.2 million dollars.
Comparing that to the 1978 97.9 million we have a reduction in the
General Fund of approximately $741,000. In terms of Debt Service,
Debt Service has gone up from 15,000,000 to 17.7 which is an increase
of 2.7 million dollars. Overall the total budget for this year is
approximately 115,000,000 as opposed to 113,000,000 for last year This
represents approximately a $2,000,000 increase. The entire increase
for our budg' for the City of Miami is attributable to General obliga-
tion Debt Service. These are retirement of debt which was approved
through referendum by the voters over a period of time. In terms of
comparison of the Millage Rate for the General Fund there is no increase
obviously we're at the maximum but General Obligation Debt Service is
going up by 1.37 mills. Now the 1.37 mills is mainly attributable to
the increase in Debt Service going from 15 to 17.7 as well as a reduc-
tion in our Fund Balance of approximately 2.9 million dollars. So
even though our Debt Service has only gone up by 2.7 we have to appro-
priate money to offset the Fund Balance deficit that we have or recuc-
tion of the Fund Balance as opposed to last year. Does everybody
understand that?
Mr. Grassie: Is that reasonably, does that make sense?
Mrs. Gordon: Explain that, please.
Mr. Gary: Ok, would you like me to? Ok. Last year we had approximately
2.9 million dollars, almost $3,000,000 in Fund Balance. This year we
only have...
Mr. Grassie: Excuse me. The way the Debt Retirement Fund acquires a
Fund Balance is that every year the amount of millage that the City
levies is not exactly what you need to retire a debt so that you have
a little money left over and over a period of years this accumulates
and earns interest and it has accumulated and sometimes the City has
had as much as 8 or $9,000,000 back 7, 8 years ago because you were
actually levying more than was necessary. Now we have been working
that down gradually and that has now come to an end which means that
we not only have to levy the amount of money that is required to meet
the traditional Debt_. Service but we also have to make up the money
that we used to take out of this surface.
Mrs. Gordon: And it is completely depleted now?
Mr. Grassie: Within a few hundred thousand, I think that there may be
left $311,000.
Mrs. Gordon: Will we be cleaning it out, will we be removing it com-
pletely or are we going to try to replenish it?
02 $Ep 131979
Mayor FerrL: He's going to replenish it,
Mrs. Gordon: You want to replenish it?
Mr. Grassie: Well, you want to replenish it if you oan do it withant
increasing Debt Service Millage. The ideal thing is to keep your
Debt Service Millage fairly constant where it doesn't fluctuate up
and down.
Mrs. Gordon: But are you going to replenish it this year in your
projected millage or not?
Mr. Grassie: No.
Mrs. Gordon: You're not.
Mr. Grassie: Well, this is a high year so we would not intend to
replenish it this year. What you try to do is replenish it in low
years.
Mayor Ferre: On the surface it
have 8 or $9,000,000 sitting in
understand that it isn't a bad
interest than you're paying.
Mr. Grassie: Well, this is tax money so you really don't pay any
interest on it - that's even better.
sounds like a bad thing to do to
the bank but let's make sure we
thing because you're making more
Mayor Ferre: So in other words obviously you don't want, you know
at this point when we're up to a Millage Rate of 13.2 or 14.5 we
don't want to go any higher but in years past the fact that we had
5 or 6 or $7,000,000 in the bank earning interest was not such a bad
thing because that in itself strengthened the City's fiscal posture
whenever we went out to sell bonds.
Mr. Grassie: Now there is one other factor about this and that is
that by State Law we don't have the option of imposing a lot of
Debt Service Millage that we don't need. What we're supposed to do
is impose pretty much what we need.
Mayor Ferre: Well how do we end up having $9,000,000?
Mr. Grassie: Because of this not being exactly accurate... and over
a period of years they've been....
Mayor Ferre: But you can't use that money for General Revenue, that's
got to be strictly for debt retirement.
Mr. Grassie: That's correct.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, but it does raise interest and that could be fed
into the General Fund, can the interest be removed from that?
Mr. Grassie: No.
Mrs. Gordon: It has to build up on its own.
Mayor Ferre: And it eventually goes to debt reduction so
use the interest or you can't intermingle funds.
Mrs. Gordon: No but by raising the interest on it eventually you
are going to tax people less because this has received a return,
you can t
Mr. Gary: Ok, I'd like to go to the changes in the General Fund.
Mayor Ferre: Excuse me, Howard, before we do that since obviously
the most important change and I think all of us have to answer to
our constituents - why would taxes go up - taxes are going up because
of debt. And I think we really have to before we get into the General
Fund which is where we're going to be spending 90% of our time I
think it is important for all of us to understand why our General
Obligation Debt Service needs to go up from 3.2 to 4.5 number one and
number two I've got some very basic questions: In the past what's
the highest we've ever been? Have we ever been to 4.5 mills? What
is the total debt of the City of Miami? How much more is it this
year than it was last year? Where did the money go, vhat wa it
used for? Because that s the main thing that we re going to have to
03 SEP 131978
•
answer since in effectyou have a decrease in the General Fund of
three-quarters of a million dollars where the increase where the
money is coming from is from the Debt Service.
Mr. Grassie: And it is not a proposed tax increase the way the
newspapers would have it since we have no option about paying our
debts.
Mrs. Gordon: I think that is a very important point that we have
to in some way get across to the people because it's the peoples'
debt, it's a debt that they by their referendums incurred and I think
we have to make a real strong point of making them understand it.
Mr. Grassie: If_ you'd like to turn to page 9, the little green circle
page 9 at the top of the page you will see in the fourth column there,
the Debt Service column which covers the City's experience from 1960
to present and ....
Mayor Ferre: So the answer is that we have to go back to 1969 before
we had a Debt Service this high as far as the millage is concerned.
Mr. Grassie: And what has happened is that you were this high and
higher back that far and it's gone down slowly and then it has been
coming up again and that is strictly based on the number of bond
issues that have been outstanding. Now we can show you how much
has to be repaid on every bond issue if you'd like, for that we have
to get a copy of the City's financial report.
Mayor Ferre: Joe, you weren't here but I remember back when Dave
Kennedy was Mayor or even before that in the 1969 Bond Issue that
was passed, perhaps 72 when you all were on the Commission that
there was a commitment made by Mel Reese and the Commission at that
time that we would never exceed - you know legally so we all under-
stand this
Mrs. Gordon: Did what?
Mayor Ferre: Well, that's what I'm trying to remember. Legally we
ca_, have 157 or our tax base, total assessed evaluation as debt. Our
total assessed evaluation is how much now, this year?
Mr. Gary: Four Billion is ....
Mr. Grassie: In round figures.
Mayor Ferre: Four billion, all right. Fifteen percent of
billion is....
Mr. Grassie: It's 3.8 billion really.
Mayor Ferre: Fifteen percent of four is $600,000,000 is what we
could owe. We presently owe how much?
Mr. Grassie: We presently owe about a third of that. Jim, do you
remember?
Mr. Gunderson: It was approximately $130,000,000.
Mr. Grassie: It's about a third.
Mayor Ferre: I just want to get this into perspective for Rose and
Father and myself so that when people ask us we know what's going
on. Is this another New York? So that we can explain some basic
things. We can theoretically borrow up to $600,000,000. We're now
borrowing 130,000,000. Now 130,000,000 for a City the size of 350,000
people is not excessive, that is below the average. Now there is
another way of measuring this. As I remember in some of these meet-
ings I've been to they use the factor from 12 to 15% of your total
budget, if you go over 15% then it is getting high.
Mr. Grassie: Debt Service?
04 SEP111978
Mayor Ferre: Yes, Debt Service of you t6tat budget, NOW your
total proposed budget is hot. much?
Mr, Grassie: Well, 118,000,000.
Mayor Ferre: All right, 10% of that 'would" be $18 , 000 , 000 . Your
debt service is about,...
Mr. Grassie: Seventeen.
Mayor Ferre: So in other words our Debt Service is about 10% of
our total budget. As I understand it in good fiscal practice in
cities conservative figures are about 12%.
Mr. Grassie: That's conservative.
Mayor Ferre: So that's another test. So we're one-third of what
the state would allow us, we're average for a city this size and as
a percentage of our budget it is not excessive. Now the last thing
I wanted to ask you is we owe $130,000,000, have we ever owed
$130,000,000 before?
Mr. Grassie: Has our total debt ever been more than that? I'd have
to go back to the tables, sir. The likelihood is that it is more
than it has been at any single time in the past, you know I would
think.
INAUDIBLE
Mayor Ferre: Well, it is our problem in a sense that the people
passed the bond issue but we're the ones as the Commission that we .
decided to put it out and sell it and do it. And during the 69 Bond
Issue and in 72 when I think the both of you were here then - I wasn't
in 72 but I was in 69 - Mel Reese and the leadership of those bond
issues made commitments I think we ought to go back and research.
Maybe you might remember.
Mr. Grimm: No, I don't remember that, Mr. Mayor.
Mayor Ferre: Well, we made commitments that the millage would never
exceed and I think we had four or five that we made a commitment to
the people that the Commission, it was only that Commission, they
can't speak for us, that that Commission would not increase the mil-
lage beyond a certain point no matter what because as it is we still
have a lot of bond issues that we haven't sold. Isn't that true?
Mr. Grassie: A reasonable amount, yes. You mean of authorized bonds
which have not been put on the market because we don't want to put
them on until the projects....
Mayor Ferre: Let me ask you that question because that's something
that people may ask: How much, if this Commission wanted to go out
and get the City further in debt how much has been authorized that
hasn't been issued?
Mr. Grassie: At least another mill.
Mayor Ferre: No, in dollars.
Mr. Grassie: Oh, $60,000,000 sticks in my mind.
Mr, Gunderson: That's with the last and then you authorized another
$15,000,000, the people voted for storm sewers.
Mayor Ferre: For storm sewers, right, that passed?
Mr. Gunderson: Yes, 15. And then out of that we have included in
this figure a sale of 18,000,000 that is going to come before you
here very shortly to be sold in November. So basically that gets
you down to about $60,000,000 again.
Mayor Ferre: Wait, you got me lost. If we owe 130 and you're going
to sell 18 that will bring it up close to 150,
05
SEP 131978
Mr. Grassie: ... No, we're talking about authorized but not issued
bonds which were at 60, they've gone up 15, they're coming down by
18 because we're going to ask you to issue 18 so we're back at 60
more or less.
Mayor Ferre: So Mr. Grassie, what I'm trying you know just to get,
the general outline of numbers because I would like to do that as I
go into these things. What we have is issued right now 130. You're
proposing that that be an increase and that we authorize an additional
18 which say just to round it off is 150. Now we were at 60, 15 is
passed but we're coming down 18. Okay? So in effect what we're doing
is we'll be at about 57.
Mr. Grassie: That's correct.
4
Mayor Ferre: That has been authorized but not issued so we'll be just
to use round figures 150 that have been authorized, 57 that have not
been authorized but that we could and for that the price tag is 4.5
mills and just from simple mathematics to be able to issue the other
ones would be somewhat over a mill.
Mr. Grassie: Well, if you went the whole 60, of course, it would be
about 2 mills.
Mayor Ferre: Okay. Then the next question is, and I remember Mel
Reese always used to make a schedule of the reduction because he always
figured out you know as to how much the people of Miami would really
carry and how much we could put out. Now my question is there is a
reduction?
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: Okay. What is your projection for the two or three years?
Mr. Grassie: After next year it will continue to go down. That is the
millage attributable to debt service for the next ten years after next
year will go down.
Mayor Ferre: Assuming we don't issue anymore.
Mr. Grassie: Assuming there will be no more issues.
Mayor Ferre: Okay, so that's the question. How much will it go down?
You're going to sell 18 million, now once that's done you're up to
4.47 because I assume that that includes the sale, an estimated sale -
you don't know what it's going to be but you're estimating it will be
' 6% or 7% or what have you - and that's in there.
Mr. Grassie: Six and three-quarters, what is your estimate?
Mr. Gunderson: About Six and a half.
Mayor Ferre: And you're going to market when, in November?
Mr. Gunderson: November 9th.
Mayor Ferre: Okay, so assuming that you get 6 3/4 and you sell the
18 million on November 9th my question is this, and that's 4.487 and
nothing else, what happens next year? What does that go down to?
Mr. Grassie: Well, you're asking me to remember. It goes down slightly,
it goes down to just about 4 as I recall.
Mayor Ferre: Well that's not slightly.
Mr. Gunderson: Just over 4.
(INAUDIBLE)
Mayor Ferre: 197?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yes, sir,
06 SEP 131978
4
if*
M-. rassie: So basically What t teas telling you is tight and that
is that after next year, otie tote year to go, the thing starts taking
off.
Ma,►o•r Ferre: Well, but see that's a total figure of debt service.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, what you're looking for is the millage.
Mayor Ferre: The millage, that's what people want to know. Mr. doe
Citizen doesn't understand all that stuff. He says, you know, are
my taxes going to keep going up because you guys are out there speed-
ing our money?
Mr. Gunderson: You've got an offsetting factor called increased
assessment.
Mr. Gary: Right, you've got to determine the assessed evaluation
to determine what the millage is going to be because if assessed
evaluation goes up that's going to have an affect.
Mayor Ferre: People don't understand that that's just dollars out
of their pockets, it's taxes. You know, are my taxes going up because
you're out there ---
Mrs. Gordon: You've got a lot of new construction, however, and the
tax base should broaden and then you're going to have a reduction.
Mr. Grassie: The generalization that you can make is that if your
tax base goes up by 5% which is reasonable to expect and if the
amount that you actually have to pay out in total dollars is going
down as this indicates that peoples' taxes would be cut as those
two things work in their favor - the tax base going up and the amount
of money that you have to pay coming down so you would anticipate
that we could probably cut the millage by about 10 which would be
So you would get it down, you know you'd get it down to about
4.
Mayor Ferre: Well, you know my question to you is, Mr. Grassie,
you're costing me as a taxpayer another two or three hundred dollars
that I didn't have to pay last year and I want you to tell me where
you spent that money.
Mr. Grassie: Okay, we would have to go to each one of the bond issues
that are supported by that millage and tell you what projects were
in the capital program and I have them all listed.
Mayor Ferre:
Mr. Grassie:
asking it....
Look, I'm not looking, this is not...
I know that you're not asking it personally you're
Mayor Ferre: I'm asking it because that's the kind of questions
that I have to answer and Rose and Father Gibson have to answer to
people who are asking "Why are you going up?".
Mr. Grassie: The best answer is in your Capital Improvement Program.
That's where the expenses are. You have a list of every project by
neighborhood, by type of project, by funding source and it tells you
everything you're going to do with that money for the next year.
Mayor Ferre: Well, I really would like to know just for my knowledge,
what are the ten major projects that we've done where that money has
gone.
Mr. Grassie: Ok, we can get that for you easily.
Mayor Ferre: I mean is there some of it in Coconut Grove? Is some
of it in Culmer? Is some of it in the northeast area? Did Little
Havana get anything out of this?
Mr. Grassie: Yes. We're letting contracts on that sort of thing
every day, you're going to have a pile of them tomorrow or the day
after tomorrow
07
SEP131978
Mayor Ferre: If you follow the thrust of my questions, we're going
to be dealing with the employees and with a lot of problems on the
general budget but where we're at as of now as far as the newspaper
is concerned is the City of Miami is increasing taxes to the people,
IIit's increasing it because well you know that's the way they inter-
pret. It is increasing it because we're out there increasing the
debt of the City, never mind that the citizens voted for it and ap-
proved it and we're going out there increasing by an amount, we vent
II up from 3.2 to 4.5 which is a 20 increase in the debt service.
, Mr. Gary: I'd like to make a point, if I may, Mr. Grassie. You made
II a comment that we were increasing the taxes by $200.
Mayor Ferre: By 20%, 25%,
11 Mr. Gary: Ok, what we did, we're showing you here the costs for a
11 home assessed at $30,000 and really the increase to that homeowner
IIfor the year debt service will only be $38, approximately $39 so
it's not as significant as....
II
Mayor Ferre: For a person who is living on the kind of budgets that
we have 35 or 40% of our community living on $38 is a very signifi-
cant amount of money.
Mr. Gary: Well I don't question that.
Mr. Grassie: We're not putting that down we're just saying that
this is what it would be.
Mayor Ferre: Okay.
Mr. Grassie: Vince, did you want to say something?
Mr. Grimm: Well, I was just going to relate that the basic type of
that you would be talking about that would increase
your debt service are those that are done with General Obligation
Bond Funds and they are mainly the completion of your sanitary sewer
system which is actually the biggest expenditure of funds that you
do out of that, your highway program and your Parks for People Pro-
gram. Now those are the three major areas.
Mayor Ferre: I have to have an answer, Vince, because I have to
answer people like you know the voters and I also have to answer
people.... who want to know that.
4110
Mr. Grimm: I know, but part of the complication comes in that is
that the cost of the project as you did last year may lag getting
into the books by another year simply because of the assessments.
mon
Mr. Grassie: But we can identify ten major projects.
Mr. Grimm: Yes, we can identify ten major ones.
Mayor Ferre: We have to have accountability. I've already been
asked a question, "What are you doing, this is another New York,
you're going out there and borrowing money and breaking the City."
mm Mr. Grassie: I'm sure that you have.
1
•
eV: Gibson: Wouldn't it be Wise to get the listing of the p ojeots
in the different areas?
Mk, Grassie: Yes.
Mr. Grimm: Well what I guess I'm trying to say to you is that
building a new City Hall and renovating the Dinner Key Auditorium
and building a Convention Center and things like that are not the
kinds of projects that are causing peoples' tmces to go up.
Mrs. Gordon: That's another thing you ought to include in your
summary.
Mayor Ferre: Well, what is?
Mr. Grimm: Sanitary sewers and highways and parks, that's what's
causing your not federal grant projects or not C. D. pro-
jects or not other things where you're spending other sources of
funds.
Rev. Gibson: But to the man out there you need to tell us that
here are ten projects, one in Liberty City, one in the downtown, we
need that....(Inaudible comment by Mr. Grimm) I hear what you're
saying but when I talk to the guy, you know I can't tell him the
whole problem, I must say to him because it's coming up, I would
like to see the staff by - well, it shouldn't take more than ten
days, you ought to be able to do it tomorrow. ... List ten.
Mayor Ferre: And keep it simple and one page.
Rev. Gibson: List ten projects and give the location and you know
once we do that we may not have the same problem.
Mr. Grassie: Just as a little footnote on this, we are in the process
right now of putting up on our parks some signs which you may notice
in the next days which identify the improvements and the amounts of
money spent in City parks from the Parks for People Bond Fund so
that we're trying to make a connection of lines between the bond
program and the improvements that took place but I think they'll be
seeing some of those in the next week or so.
Mayor Ferre: Now, where were we?
Mr. Grassie: Shall we move to the General Fund?
Mr. Gary: Ok, with regard to the General Fund revenues last year
we had 97.9 million, this year 97.2 million for a reduction of approx-
imately $700,000. Now the changes in the revenues are as follows:
In ad valorem taxes we will gain $2,000,000. It's gone up from 36.8
million to 38.8 million.
Mayor Ferre: You mean 3.8 million?
Mr. Gary: No, on ten mills. Ten mills last year generated....
Mayor Ferre: Ok, I read you.
Mr. Gary: And this is in commercial, we're going to go up 4.8. Most
of this is attributable to the increase in the utility service tax,
we're going up from 12.8 to 17.2. This mainly attributable to the
rate increases granted the utility companies as well as increased
usage.
Mayor Ferre: Now that's tax on tax.
Mr. Grassie: That's an important point though. The only thing that
is saving us is the fact that we're getting 4.4 million dollars of
additional revenue from Florida Power and Light and that is because
of the way their rates have gone up through their rate hearings.
Mayor Ferre: And we're using that in the General Fund.
p9
SEP 131978
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: Which is another trend that has beet estAbiishedi1
the last four or five years. There was a time when that money
wasn't used for for that.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, but when the City grants across the board increases
from that source. There is no way of backing out of it, we're locked
in forever.
Mr. Gary: Miscellaneous revenues have gone up by $700,000. This
is mainly attributable to the addition of approximately $600,000
from the Conference Convention Bond Fund which will be administered
in t:he General Fi.!nd and $100,000 that we will be putting in the
Public Works Department and as a result off -setting a revenue from
FP & L. If I may what happens is we have street lights within the
City and the cost is approximately, a little over $3,000,000. FPL
charges us a franchise fee on top of that.
Mr. Grassie: Our own franchise fee.
Mr. Gary: Right. So we pay them, they in turn turn it back over to
us so it is really an accounting mechanism to put the money in our
budget to pay them whichin return we receive back.
Mr. Grassie: Then it costs $109,000 if we pay all the franchise
taxes.
Mrs. Gordon: How long do they hold it before they return it?
Mr. Grassie: Longer than we would like, one year.
Mrs. Gordon: They do? They make revenue on our money. That
fair.
Mr. Grassie: It's a detail of interest.
Rev. Gibson: I want to make sure you remember that.
Mrs. Gordon: I did, it registered.
Mr. Gary: Ok, so we have an increase of revenues of approximately
7.5 million dollars. Now the negative side in terms of federal funds
we've lost 4.3 million dollars. We've lost 2.7 in Federal Revenue
Sharing and this is mainly attributable to our fund balance. Over
the years we've had fund balance in our Federal Revenue Sharing that
we've carried over from year to year. Now that is down to zero.
Mr. Grassie: Do you remember when we were talking about the tough
budgets that we've had in the last couple of years, we tried to main-
tain, we had a $3,000,000 balance - it's tough this year but it is
going to be worse next year. Well, that's coming down and we are
down now to the point where there is no longer a balance to carry for-
ward.
Mrs. Gordon: There is nothing left in the account?
Mr. Grassie: Except for the revenue that we get each year, there is
nothing....
Mrs. Gordon: No lag?
Mr. Gary: No lag. The other reduction is due to Countercyclical
Revenue Sharing, we'll talk about that further but in essence we're
anticipating a loss of 1.5 in Countercyclical Revenue Sharing.
Mayor Ferre: That's the thing that Congressman Flood held up in Com-
mittee, Joe, and I went up there to see Dante Fascell and he couldn't
get it out and it cost us 1.6? And you had it in your original estim-
ate of the budget and you've now taken it out.
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Stupid,
10
Up 131978
Mayor Terre:
Mr, Grassie: This is a teductioti, Ve have 2 s 6 Tht11ioft IA but
We anticipate....
Mayor Ferre: I know but the 1,6 reduction that didn't pass, 11614 it's
alive in the Senate Bill. There is a Senate Bill that's alive, is
that right?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER:
Yes, sir.
Mayor Ferre: Now the Senate Bill, the reduction as I understand it
is more than 1.6.
Mr. Gary: If I may, Mr. Mayor, in this year's budget we have 4.1
anticipated from Countercyclical Revenue Sharing. In the budget that
you have before you we have 2.6 so the difference is 1.5.
Mayor Ferre: And my question to you is in the Senate Bill that is
alive the difference is more than 1.5.
Mr. Gary: I agree.
Mayor Ferre: How much is the difference? I just want
to know the reality of what we're faced with.
Mr. Gary: We got some correspondence from Mark Israel
it is almost $900,000.
the Commission
and he's saying
Mayor Ferre: More?
Mr. Gary: We're only going to get $900,000 so it would be not 2,6.
Mr. Grassie: So that's a million seven further reduction.
Mr. Gary: That's correct.
Mrs. Gordon: Beyond what you're anticipating?
Mr. Grassie: Yes, we have two million six in the budget.
Mayor Ferre: That's why I want you to realize this because this is a
very critical point. In other words, let me see if I can recap it:
This budget that you're proposing before us for $115,000,000,includes in
it funds from the federal government in the Countercyclical Program
of 2.6 million dollars. Now that is a reduction from what we got
last year of 1.6. Now in the House that particular bill was killed
in committee and the only thing that is keeping it alive is that there
is a Senate Bill that has passed the Senate and is now going to some
kind of a conference committee but if that passes, and that s the
only thing that is alive we get a further reduction of another 1.6
million dollars. So what I'm saying is that the way things are going
unless there is a miracle that budget is wrong now by 1.6 million
dollars.
Mr. Grassie: You will see that that is one of three major points
that we're going to point out to you. That's right. We question the
whole 2.6 million.
Mayor Ferre: Not only does this thing have absolutely no money for
an increase to employees it doesn't, you're counting on something,
that's just Disney World, it's a dream world. The fact is that if
the Senate Bill passes you've got to reduce that by another million
six.
Mrs. Gordon: And if it doesn't pass then you have to reduce it still
further.
Mayor Ferre; If it doesn't pass then you've got to reduce it 2,7
million dollars,
11 SEP 131978
Mrs. Gordon: 8o you're damned if you do and damned if you don't
but I'm wondering whether it wouldn't be better to have started on
the lower scale and not have to face the further problem.
Mr. Grassie: Well, that is probably the single major question that
we're going to have to talk about is how we treat that and I pointed
out: 1 think very clearly, it's in the First page and in the summary.
That is the major policy thing that we have to talk about is how we
treat those uncertainties.
Mayor Ferre: Well, I just want to point out to the Commission that
we're not only talking about the fact that this proposed budget has
no increase for employees it also is counting money that just isn't
there. Now to what extent, whether it is 1.6 or 2.7 we don't know.
Mr. Grassie: You add to the uncertainty, I think we have to recognize
that there has been some talk on the bill of a different but substitute
bill which would about January of next year provide this kind of
money although it would not be a continuation of Countercyclical.
Mayor Ferre: But that's talk.
Mr. Grassie: But that's talk. It's just one of the uncertainties.'
Rev. Gibson: Let me ask this question: As you made up this budget
did you tell the employees that?
Mr. Grassie: Well, in the way that we are telling you and everybody
in the world, yes, we tell them very clearly that there is no money
in here for the negotiations and in addition to that we are faced with
the uncertainty of at least 2.6 million dollars with regard to counter -
cyclical.
Rev. Gibson: Ok, let me put it the other way.
Mr. Grassie: We have another problem, the third problem that we're
going to get to talk about and that's CETA.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes.
Rev. Gibson: If you are talking with these people, have you taken
time out to explain to them as you have explained to us and
you know, at least I could add and I know you can't take out of the
bucket what isn't in it. Did you specifically very simply go through
the process with them as you're going through it with us? You see,
Mr. Mayor, my problem is all of those people coming up there raising
hell and rightly so and that's why we're there. They'll raise that.
But a part of that anger would be reduced if you took time out, and
you know we could take the attitude of "Well, it's none of your damned
business". Wait a minute, I didn't say you said that but what I want
to do is warn you not to do it. Okay? Because if they are reasonable
people, and I have seen Dr. Barry around here, you know, that's what
they pay him for and I think we - Have you made this available to
him?
Mr. Grassie: Oh yes.
Rev. Gibson: I just want to make sure because you know I will ask him
out there.
Mr. grassie: They were the first ones to pick up copies of the budget.
UNINTELLIGLE
Rev. Gibson: No, I want the Commission to listen to this. I didn't
ask if they picked up copies. Did you explain this to them? Now you
see you know I had this business on my desk, how many days now?
Mr. Grassie: About two weeks.
Rev. Gibson: About two weeks. All I'm saying to you is I didn't pick
that up.
12 SEP 1319"
1
s
•
•
Mr. Grassie: All right, well, it is a good point. Maybe to should
assume that they have not picked it up either and....
Mr. Gary: Mr. Grassie, I would like to add that I've had a talk with
Barry and Jessup over the .last two weeks.
Mayor Ferre: And who?
Mr. Gary: Jessup, his partner. And they're in the office right now
going through the detail records as well as I've sat down with them
I guess about three or four hours over a two week period and explained
to them just what you were asking about.
Mayor Ferre: Well, it isn't Dr. Barry and Jessup that I'm worried
about I'm worried about Don March and Powell and Smith.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, we probably ought to do it with the presidents of
the unions too.
Rev. Gibson: Right.
Mr. Gary: Ok, in terms of state funds we're going to lose almost a
million dollars. The majority of that, $500,000 is attributable to
a loss in the Cigarette Sales Tax.
Mayor Ferre: That was the Supreme Court decision?
Mr. Gary: No, that was, you're talking about Dade County Metro Court,
INAUDIBLE
Mr. Grassie: The Cigarette Tax is mostly smuggling out of Georgia.
Mrs. Gordon: That's also because the H.S.A. is fighting the smoking
habit that a lot of people have.
Mayor Ferre: I quit every other month.
Mr. Gary: The state said that the cigarette consumption has gone up.
Mrs. Gordon: Oh, it has?
Mr. Grassie: Consumption has gone up but the revenue to the state has
gone down.
Mr. Gary: The Metro court, we'll lose 1.2 as a result of the Supreme
Court decision that Dade County could not increase the court fees.
They wanted to increase the court fees from $26 to a minimum of $57
and the Supreme Court rolled that back. The carry-over Fund Balance,
as a result of revenue short -falls this year we will have less in
terms of Fund Balance next year. In terms of salary savings, we
started this ficticious revenue I guess around 75, 76 with 2.5 million
dollars and the policy has been to reduce this each year in intervals
of $500,000 so this complies with that policy. In terms of the pension,
we're going to lose $500,000. Now that is not an actual loss, in your
manual we stated to you some of the changes in this budget as opposed
to previous years' budget and most of it is attributable to the State
Uniform Accounting System that the state mandated. And as a result,
these contributions from others mainly Dade County and Off -Street
Parking will now be put in a Trust and Agency Fund, it will no longer
be put in the General Fund. So this will not be coming into the
General Fund but directing it to the Pension Fund.
IIMr. Grassie: In other words we don't lose the amount but it doesn't
11 end up in the General Fund.
Mr. Gary: In with the revenues and expenditures in the Trust and
ilAgency. Other revenues, approximately $300,000, that's mainly attri-
11 butable to the Street Lighting Fund. This year we used $241,000 of
Street Lighting Funds to pay for some expenses that were not included
in that budget as adopted namely the University of Chicago contract
for Fire Medical Exams. This year we don't have any money from the
Street Lighting Fund so that's a loss right there. So our total
overall decrease is 8.2 and comparing that to the 7.5 million increase
m
13
SEP 131978
We have approximately a $700,000 decrease. This 7 here coincides
With this $741,000, we just rounded it. Okay? Now changes in the
General Fund appropriation, it was very difficult for us to reduce
the budget and to achieve our reduction in view of the fact that we
had $700,000 less to deal with. The department has achieved this
by abolishing 84 positions from the current table of organization
and this generated approximately $1,000,000 plus the increase of non-
payroll items of approximately 300, therefore, we have the reduction
of $700,000.
Mr. Grassie: On that I think it is interesting for us to comment at
this point of what has happened to departments because you see at
this point they're cutting positions and still they're operating -
supplies and the things they buy are going up by $300,000. What
happened was that last year when we had the squeeze on the budget
what they did was they cut out all of their operating supplies and
their capital money hoping to get by for a year. You know you don't
buy the typewriters, you know you don't buy the asphalt and the things
that you need. Now they're starting to realize that they can't live
very long that way, that you can do that for a short period of time
but, in fact, they can't operate that way. Now they're starting to
have to cut positions and they're spending more for their supplies
and their equipment and so on.
Mr. Gary: Now the budget to accomplish this, well, the consequence
of this is that we're going to have fewer than 10 lay-offs.
Mr. Grassie: And we need to talk about that too because administratively
we have had a virtual freeze on hiring now for several months which has
created the vacancies necessary so that departments could eliminate
vacancies without laying off people and we're down to a point where we
have relatively few positions that would still be affected by a lay-
off and by October 1 when the new budget goes into effect it will be
even less than that.
Mayor Ferre:
Mr. Grassie:
pretty close.
So you're doing it by attrition.
Yes, cutting as close as we can, you know we're cutting
Mr. Gary: Also, the effect of the ten lay-offs because of the CETA
policy that if you're going to lay-off in the General Fund position
all like positions in CETA must also follow, it would be an effect of
30 positions in CETA, as Mr. Grassie said, as those reductions occur.
Now as Mr. Grassie said earlier we have some outstanding issues as
it relates to this budget. The first is that we do not have included
in this budget any provisions for union increases. Secondly, the
uncertainty about Countercyclical Revenue Sharing, what's going to be
the fate of that - whether we lose an additional 1.7 or we lose the
total 2.6. The next thing is the uncertainty about the CETA, and I'm
browsing through this and Mr. Grassie can give you further explanation
but the CETA question is, we haven't talked about it as of yet, but
Congress is discussing or considering reducing the program by one
billion dollars which means that that would have to be absorbed by all
the jurisdictions within the country which means you have less positions.
In addition to that they are talking about how much a city or a juris-
diction can supplement CETA positions. The house is talking about
a $2,000 ceiling with an additional $2,000 for those high wage areas.
The Senate is talking about no supplement at all and that may be damag-
ing to departments if we first of all reduce positions and off -hand
we cannot supplement positions.
Mayor Ferre: How many CETA positions does the City have right now?
Mr. Grassie: General Fund by departments, working in departments?
Mayor Ferre: Yes. These are not in programs you know outside but in
the City of Miami.
Mr. Grassie: 1,100, of course, that fluctuates, it is always up and
down.
Mayor Ferre: And what is the average of what those 1,100 people make?
14
SEP 131978
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: $9 , 200 .
Mayor Ferre: Ok, so if we go to an $8,000 we'll be all right provided
there is a two thousand something acceptable except in some cases
where we'll be hurt.
Mr. Grassie: No, we won't be all right, it will mean that more than
50% of the people will be ineligible...,
Mayor Ferre: Tell me how, if your average is $9,900 and it would be
at 8,000 as I understand it plus a 2,000 supplement. Isn't that what
they said? mow
Mr. Grassie: About 50% of your positions will be ineligible,
you know, about half.
Mrs. Gordon: You mean the ten can be dropped down to eight?
Mr. Grassie: Well, that's one possibility that the Mayor is postu-
lating.
Mayor Ferre: Well, Congress is talking about it, all the things
they're talking about....
Mr. Grassie: But that's the most extreme thing I think they're talk-
ing about.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, I think what the problem is is that there has been
so much scandal and it's not only in Miami, and the Miami Herald has
really been the leader in the nation in trying to in my opinion muck
rake this thing way out of proportion because out of all the CETA
programs there may be 10% and even John Baldwin admitted to me yester-
day that he realized that it maybe was only 10-15% of the total but,
of course, you know that's not what the Herald writes and that's not
what Time Magazine picked up and that's not how these things are per-
ceived a`nd tat affects congressmen in Nebraska and what have you as
they look at these things. And then the Herald's stories have spread
because it's only the Herald but it's in Atlanta and Washington, D. C.,
for example Sterling Tucker got himself caught in a mess because he
had some supposed relatives or in-laws or somebody who was on the
CETA positions and that kind of stuff is front page in the Washington
newspapers and St. Louis and California and everywhere this is going
on and that is affecting congress's attitude and one of the things
tat they're doing is figuring ways to squeeze on this, to lower it
and make it for the poverty sector. The problem is that if they
squeeze enough there are going to be a lot of cities throughout the
United States that are going to go bankrupt or not be able to render
the services they've been rendering in past years. The City of Miami
is not alone in this situation.
ISWia
Mrs. Gordon: Some of them are a lot worse. Hartford, Connecticut
is one, it depends entirely on CETA - not entirely, but they utilized
CETA a long time before we did in a manner that we were considering
last year and didn't proceed with, they felt that an acceptable pro-
cedure.
Mayor Ferre: So there is a serious problem and I think it is import-
ant for us to every time we run into Dante Fascell and Claude Pepper
and Bill Lehman and others to impress upon them that CETA is not only
something that takes care of poor people it also is keeping the City
of Miami and other cities including Metropolitan Dade County alive.
And if it weren't for CETA, if we didn't have CETA there would be
1,100 jobs we would have less....
Mr. Grassie: That we couldn't finance.
Mayor Ferre: ... that we couldn't finance and our corresponding ser-
vice to the community would have to be reduced by that,But where does
the CETA Act, where is it now in congress?
Mr. Grassie: It is still being debated.
Mayor Ferre: Is it in Committee or has it passed the Senate?
SEP 13 1978
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It has passed the Senate, it is going baoR
to the house and will eventually end up in conference.
Mayor Ferre: Before the October recess?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: That's debatable, sir, it's debatable.
may not make the October recess.
Mayor Ferre: Fine.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Will there be a continuing resolution?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yes, either a continuing resolution...possibly
some time in January. That probably is owing to the fact that there
are so many state and local elections this year and they want to get
over the November hump.
Mayor Ferre:
Mr. Grassie:
Mayor Ferre:
Which means that we're playing with a time bomb here.
That's why it's one of the major outstanding issues.
And what are you assuming in this budget, Mr. Grassie?
Mr. Grassie: We are assuming, as I say in my covering letter, we
are assuming that we are going to have to modify this budget as we
go along in the year and that's the basic policy question that we're
were talking about a minute ago. In the case of CETA, for example,
we probably won't know how it is going to impact us for three months
and when we do know we will probably have six months of a sort of a
phase -out.
Mayor Ferre: Assuming it broke down.
Mr. Grassie: No, assuming that the rules have changed they will
probably give us about six months to get our employment pattern in
compliance with the new rules.
Mayor Ferre: They, the Department of Labor.
Mr. Grassie: They, the Department of Labor.
Mayor Ferre: Well, let me ask specifically this: Last year the
CETA Program was $93,000,000, this year the proposal is $75,000,000.
Right?
Mr. Grassie: That's correct.
Mayor Ferre: That's a decrease of almost $20,000,000 which is about
22%, 23% decrease. Now that's what they're projecting as of now,
they're guessing - it might be higher, it might be lower. Now my
question to you is did you project a 20% decrease or are you taking
the CETA positions that are being removed from the program that are
not ours. Is that why you have a freeze on some of these CETA posi-
tions?
Mr. Grassie: Just as we have a freeze on our own CETA positions...
(interrupted). The assumption, this budget is not impacted by the
CETA question except for the supplement that we have to provide so
long as the CETA Program is in place. The way we are impacted....
Mayor Ferre: That's not my
that the CETA Consortium is
account in this budget, yes
question. There is a 20%, 22% decrease
looking at, have you taken that into
or no?
Mr. Grassie: We do not have to take it into account in this budget.
Mayor Ferre: Why?
Mr. Grassie: Because what we provide in this budget is the supple-
ment to pay the extra for the CETA positions that we anticipate
getting. Now, the positions that we anticipate getting are reduced.
Mayor Ferre: Well, that's my question.
Mr. Grassie: But that affects service, it does not affect this budget.
Mayor Ferre: No, that's not so. If you have 1,100 CETA employees
��' SEP 131978
1111111111111111101111111111111111111111111111111 111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
and you have to reduce 20% and you're knocking off 200 CETA employees
and you're supplementing them that's going to affect your budget.
Mr. Grassie: We are providing, maybe the answer that you're looking
for is that we are providing supplements for fewer salaries in this
budget.
Mayor. Ferre: By 30?
Mr. Grassie: By 30 what?
Mayor Ferre: You said 30 CETA positions will be abolished,
Mr. Grassie: Oh yes.
Mayor. Ferre: 0r is it by more?
Mr. Grassie: No, it's by much more than that.
Mayor Ferre: Well, then that's my question. How much?;
assumption here?
Mr. Grassie: Well, I'd have to go through every budget and add.
Mayor Ferre: Look, in the simplest terms when you say you've got
three uncertainties in this budget represented, (1) What's going to
come out of negotiations, (2) How about the Humphrey Bill, the Counter -
cyclical stuff and (3) the uncertainty about CETA. I'm asking you
about CETA.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, but you have to understand that the uncertainty
about CETA affects us this way - it does not affect us in the sense
that the dropping of CETA causes any appropriated money to be lost.
Mayor Ferre: But that's questionable, I don't see that. ... You
have to fill in by putting in people that we've got to pay out of
our own budget or are you saying that you are going to reduce services?
Mr. Grassie: Well, that's how it affects us. You see, when the CETA
Program drops out what it means in terms of this appropriated budget
is that you're going to end up with a little money that you don't
hive to spend because you don't have to spend the supplement for the
person you don't have. However, you also lose the person so at that
point if you lose 40 people or 80 people out of your Park Program
then you have to come back to your budget and say, "Can I afford to
have a Park Department without these 80 people and if I can't then
I've got to take money from some place else and put it in Parks.
Mayor Ferre: 0r turn Parks over to Metropolitan Dade County.
Mr. Grassie: That's the way it is going to affect us.
Mayor Ferre: Well, I think we have to face reality where we may be
heading and talk about these things because these are alternatives
that we've got to be aware of. I mean you know the City of Miami is
at a very critical point and I think that we as elected members of
this Commission have got to understand where we're at.
Rev. Gibson: Let me ask, in turning over to Metropolitan Dade County,
aren't they similarly situated?
Mayor Ferre: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: In my opinion they are.
Mayor Ferre: They can't turn it over to us but we can turn it over
to them.
Rev. Gibson: Let me raise it this way: Homestead says, well, we
want to get rid of our Fire Department, Metropolitan Dade County has
made its budget and made no allowance for it and so then what happens?
Mr. Grassie: They didn't take it just as they have not taken the
Beach's Fire Department.
•
Rev. Gibson: igeii then..:.
Mayor Ferre: That's not a solution if they don't a.fteit it, obviously
unless we just decide to unincorporate. Mat? They did take the
Homestead Fire Department?
Mr. Grassie: But they haven't taken the Beach Fire Department have
they?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: No, sit.
Rev. Gibson: But they said... Okay, he said they took it....
Mayor Ferre: Well yes, what he said is that Metro took Homestead
but they didn't take the Beach Fire Department. Of course, what
happens is that they like to take things with corresponding moneys
like you know they wanted to take over our Library System or the
Water and Sewer Board because they make money on that but you try to
give them something that doesn't make any money.
Rev. Gibson: But 1 thought they said in Homestead that they did not
have the money appropriated. That's what the news said.
Mayor Ferre: That Homestead didn't or the County didn't?
Rev. Gibson: That the County did not have the money available to
take over the Homestead Fire Department.
Mayor Ferre: But the County has a billion dollar budget and I think
the Homestead Fire Department is a relatively small thing within a
billion dollar budget, give or take 2 or $3,000,000.
Rev. Gibson: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: They'll find it.
Mr. Grassie: But back to your principle policy question that we were
talking about, the choice that we have is between proposing to you a
budget which would cut hundreds of people now not knowing what the
problem was going to be and proposing a budget which is inbalanced
recognizing the uncertainties that we have to face. Now each one of
these has to be faced up to. The CETA question may affect us 9 or
10 months from now because of the lag that we talked about. The
Countercyclical question we were just talking about when that is
likely to get resolved, may affect us in November or December, three
or four months from now. The union negotiating question could affect
us in three weeks, a month, you know depending on how quickly those
three processes take place. So what I'm saying is (1) we don't have
certainty about any one of these problems, (2) They're spaced out in
your next budget year and the only intelligent course of action that
we can see is that we've got to deal with each one of those as they
come up and we should not penalize people in the short run because
of what might happen to us.
Mayor Ferre: Or might not happen.
Mr. Grassie: And may not happen. Now that's the basic choice that
we had to make.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Grassie, let me ask you this question just so that
we know the extent of pendulum's swing on all this. How much were
the negotiated employee or the total employee increases in the last
budget?
Mr. Grassie: Well, you can use the round figure of $2,000,000 assum-
ing that everybody was about equally treated and so on.
Mayor Ferre: Now how much....
Mr. Grassie: Countercyclical is 2.6 million.
Mayor Ferre: Right, and CETA you say is a question of reducing ser-
vices,
Mr. Grassie: Yes, that's real tough but that could affect us for
2 or $3,000,000. 1LL99�'j
SEP 1 3 1978
Mayor Ferre: So what we're talking about is passing a $115,000,000
budget of which 97 is the General Fund and which what we're talking
about is from 4 to $6,000,000 that we don't know....
Mr. Grassie: Probably could impact us, that is correct. But we
know that they're likely to be, some of them are going to be a prbb=
lem.
Rev. Gibson: (inaudible) $6,000,000.
Mayor Ferre: You see, the difference is this, when Bob High was
Mayor and when you were on the Zoning Board the City of Miami was
pretty self-sufficient in that it depended pretty much on ad valorem
taxes but the City of Miami's budget when I first came to the City...
Mrs. Gordon: (inaudible)
Mayor Ferre: Yes, but the City of Miami's budget, Rose, the first
budget that I approved as a Commissioner in 1967 as you recall was
20 or $30,000,000. Now we're at $115,000,000. So when you're talking
about $30,000,000 and you're talking about revenues coming in from
your ad valorem taxes and that was 20 some odd million dollars and
you get Cigarette Tax and you get this and that, there was no Revenue
Sharing, there was relatively little federal money coming in but the
City of Miami was a different kind of an entity. Now you're talking
about a government that has over 4,000 employees, of which a thousand
are CETA, $115,000,000 budget, we get $17,000,000 in debt repayment
which we didn't have in those days and the fact is that if you look
at where the money is going to come from the money is not going to
come from ad valorem taxes because ad valorem taxes only makes up
for about 307 of the total amount. So in effect if the City in 1978-79
were being run the way the City was being run in 1968 you would prob-
ably have a budget of about 50 or $60,000,000 but it isn't. And the
point is that we've now become dependent on federal and state revenues
and before the tax assessor would send us an estimate and Mr. Reese
would sit down and sit down with the department heads and say, alright,
how much are we going to, you know who is going to spend what and you
hammer that out, work out with the employee unions, etc. and we had
certainty. Now we've got a situation where we don't have any certainty
because only 30% of our total revenue comes from that certain source
called ad valorem taxes. The rest of it comes from all different kinds
of places. The fact that we could have a swing in business and com-
mercial and Florida Power and Light of 4.8 million dollars is just
something that we didn't count on. We weren't figuring that, it's
just manna from heaven. If it weren't for that we'd be in serious
trouble. So this is a precarious existence.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, we have to keep trying to balance our bond fund
programs, the things we can do that way, the things we can do with
federal moneys and grant programs and try and stay afloat in terms
of our flexible money which is the General Fund.
INAUDIBLE
Mayor Ferre: Now give us the good news.
Mr. Grassie: What is the good news?
Rev. Gibson: Is there any?
Mr. Grassie: Well, the only good news I guess is that in the short
run we may be able to get by without laying -off a lot of people, you
know that's the good news and that was pretty hard to accomplish.
Now that's short run good news but you know we've been working towards
that by this modified freeze that I told you about so we really have
some vacant positions for departments to work with. We have gone
through the basic summary of the budget. It may be useful for you
and I would like for you to tell me if you don't think that it helps
you. It may be useful for us to simply go through the summary pages
which start on page 11 of your book so that you can see what we are
trying to present for you here. These summaries are basically designed
to help you understand this 300 pages of stuff. Do you want to run
through these summaries, Howard, and simply explain each one?
19 SEPI3197B
Mr. Gary: Beginning on page 11 we have what we call the Revenue
Summary and it really by major categories shows you the revenue
sources as well as those revenues we are going to receive from those
sources. As opposed to last year this year we are showing you the
adopted figure for 77-78 as well as the amended figure and those
amended figures represent those changes mainly that you have made dur-
ing the course of the year. Then we have the proposed figure. Now
the reason we show you the amended figure is because budgets change
constantly. Whenever you adopt a budget the next day it will be out
of date, if you pass an ordinance the next day to add money and increase
expenditures. The comparison in this budget shows the real comparison
in terms of what we actually are doing now or what is actually happen-
ing now and what we are proposing for next year between the amended
and the proposed.
Mr. Grassie: Now if you will both chime in here as we go along, if
you use those two last columns then I think that you will be able to
pick out some of the things that we've been talking about that you
may want to remind yourself of from time to time. For example,in
the General Fund you see, we're on page 11, the last line tells you
about anticipated Salary Savings to be earned, you can see that that
goes from a million and a half down to a million. That's one of
those things that we talked about. You can also see when you get
down to the General Obligation Bonds that the ad valorem requirement
goes from 11,700,000 to 17 1/2 million and that shows you what the
size of our problem is. But you can also the Fund Balance, for the
current year we appropriated over $3,000,000 from Fund Balance, this
year we've got virtually nothing. That's where part of the problem
is.
Mr. Gary: In addition to showing you the General Fund and also the
General Obligation Debt Service we also show you other funds that we
have within the budget namely the Enterprise Fund, the Intragovernmental
Service Fund, the Debt Service Fund other than General Obligation
Debt Service, the Trust and Agency Fund. Now if you want to get an
overview of the entire city you have to look at all of these funds but
in terms of the tax rate there's really the General Fund and General
Obligation Debt Service funds. So these are the revenue and the
revenue sources on this page. Now if you turn to page 12 what this
does is take that summary of revenue by sources and breaks it down
to detail so you'll know where we're getting, you know we take a major
category and break it down to detail. For example, if you look at
the property taxes that's a major category as we have in the front
but if you look at service charges we've broken down each individual
source of revenues from the service charges, an example is the Police
Department reports. You can see here if you look at the amended
column as opposed to the estimated column you'll see that we are
falling down in that area. That contributes to the reduction in
revenues for service charges. I'd like to also if I may give you an
example of what I showed you on the chart. If you go to page 13,
the next page over you'll see Utility Service Tax about half way down
the page, the lower half. You'll see that we had 12.7, approximately
12.8 in the budget for this year. On the chart I showed you that it
had gone up about 4.4 million dollars and this way you'll see it right
here, the detail. It has gone from 12.8 up to 17 million 2 approx-
imately. So this is a detail of the revenue for the General Fund.
Now if you go to page 15 we're now going into the Enterprise Fund.
Mr. Grassie: Excuse me. But as you go along you see these pages
give you an easy way to pet some of idea of where you money is coming
from. You know that you re talking about a total budget of 115, or
if you talk about including the Enterprise Fund, $118,000,000. You
can easily see that your property tax is getting you about $39,000,000
total, that's all you get from the Real Estate Tax for the whole
City. You can also see how important your federal funds are, they're
in here for $10,000,000 but your business and commercial which includes
the FP & L money, that's almost $27,000,000 and basically the franchise
fee is the big thing in here. And your state funds are about $12,000,000.
You're actually getting more from state funds than you are from federal
funds as far as the General Fund is concerned.
Mayor Ferre: Say that again?
Mr. Grassie: You're actually getting more from state funds
Mayor Ferre: Than we are from the federal. Mr. Grassie: Yes, in terms of the General Fund. 20 SIP 1 3 1978
Mayor Ferre: Yes, but, of course, the state funds a lot of them ccirie from the
federal govenuuent themselves.
Mr. Grassie: Well, these are basically state generated funds.
Mayor Ferre: Yes. let me ask you this: Do you think that in item 6 here that
the $10,000,000 we're getting from the federal government is our fair share of what
the federal government has to give out?
Mr. Grassie: Well, in terms of General Fund support the answer is
probably yes. Keep in mind that this does not include federal moneys
for CETA, it does not include federal moneys for CD.
Mr. Fosmoen: Just as a comment, the major portion of that is in Federal
Revenue Sharing, the State of Florida is in the bottom five of the
states in terms of ics return of the Revenue Sharing because of our
state tax effort. We're way down at the bottom state -wise in the num-
ber of Federal Revenue Sharing dollars coning into the state.
Mr. Grassie: That's getting into a pretty complex kind of question.
You see....
Mayor Ferre: You're talking about the federal funding that comes from
Washington to Florida is about the lowest in the nation proportionate
because our tax number is very low, we don't tax our people enough -
it's a formula.
Mr. Grassie: The tax effort, Mr. Mayor, if you don't tax yourself
the federal government says....
Mayor Ferre: 0r if you don't help yourself I'm not going to help you,
if you want me to help you you go and help yourself. And since the
state of Florida is about one of the lowest in taxation of its citizens,
therefore, the formulat does not give the State of Florida much money.
Now the only way to remedy that, of course, is to increase our taxes
then we get into a California situation.
Mr. Gary: Well, most people have state income taxes and they get more
money but we don't have a state income tax.
Mayor Ferre: That's where it's
Mr. Grassie: But I just wanted to point out to you since you know
there is a general feeling that there is a big dependence on the federal
government for the General Fund I wanted to point out to you how you
can check some of these things.
Mayor Ferre: In other words the point you're making is that we actually
get more from the state than we get from the federal government.
Mr. Grassie: That's correct.
Mayor Ferre: We get 10,000,000 from one and 12,000,000 from the other,
from the state.
Mr. Grassie: In the General Fund, that's correct.
Mayor Ferre: Now my question to you is again are we getting in your
opinion our fair share, is that $10,560,000 pretty representative of
what we ought to be getting?
Mr. Grassie: For what is eligible in the General Fund, yes.
Mayor Ferre: Do we get an "A" in our grade, are we, you know put it
to me in simple terms.
Mr. Grassie: In most areas of federal grant getting we're doing
reasonably well. I'd say that we'd get an 80 on the scale of 100.
There are some areas particularly in economic development and some
Public Works Grant areas where we're not doing very well.
Mayor Ferre: But that doesn't come into the General Fund, I'm talking
about the General Fund.
21
BEP 131978
Mr. Grassie: In the General Fund I think we're doing, we're at
least at the 80% level.
Mayor Ferre: In other words there's not much, were not leaving any
dollars on the table up there.
Mr. Grassie:
$45,000 here
Mayor Ferre:
Mr. Grassie:
We could get a few little categoricals here, you know
and you know that kind of thing.
Is Federal Revenue Sharing on a
yes.
Mayor Ferre: So there's not
way or the other.
formula basis?
a damned thing we can do about it one
Mr. Gary: (INAUDIBLE)
Mayor Ferre: Ok, how about at the state level?
Mr. Grassie: Well, there's relatively little we can do
except apply for some of the special grants.
Mayor Ferre: Are we getting our fair share, again
hundred? Are you going to give us 80 on that one?
Mr. Grassie: We are getting our fair share, we're
our fair share in terms of the formula grants...
Mayor Ferre: Of the State Revenue Sharing, I'm talking beyond that.
Mr. Grassie: But we are not getting as much as we should in some of
the parks, open space development grants from the state.
Mayor Ferre: That again doesn't impact the General Fund.
Mr. Grassie: That's correct, those are special project moneys.
Mayor Ferre: I've got to interrupt for a minute, why don't you just
keep on going and I'll be back in a while.
Mr. Gary: If you'll turn to page 15, what we've done here is we're
giving you a comparison of the revenues to expenditures for the Enter-
prise Fund.
Mr. Grassie: Excuse me, one other thing on page 14 just so we cover
some of the things that you can get out of these kinds of summaries,
if you look at items 10, 11 and 12 on page 14, that's at the bottom
of the page I think again you can see how you can use these summaries.
Item 10 tells you that your carry over balance from the General Fund
is going down significantly. Item 11 tells you that you had a one
time take-out from the Street Lighting Fund which you don't have and
you can see...
from zero to a
getting absolutely
Mayor Ferre: We also don't have increased street lighting. How much
are we spending on street lighting?
Mr. Grassie: No, that's not true. The Street Lighting Program is on
schedule.
Mayor Ferre: Well, you mean on a new schedule because we have reduced
it several times. Is that right, Vince?
Mr. Grimm: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: But we are moving about as quickly as FP & L can build,
they've got some problems in terms of construction.
Mayor Ferre: What does that amount to, it is under a million dollars
a year isn't it?
Mr. Grimm: Oh sure, your Street Lighting Budget now is 3,1 and your
completed program will probably be somewhat over 4.
Mayor Ferre: So we're talking about an 8, 9 year program for street
lighting.
SEP 131978
22
Mt. Gritn : Yes.
MY. Grassie: Do you think so, Aimee, nine yeah?
Mr. Grimm: Not from now, from when you started,
Mayor Ferre: Well what is it from now?
Mr. Grassie: Well we're six years into a ten year program at least,
six or seven years. We've got either three or four years to go to
finish the whole city.
Mr. Gary: This year for. the Enterprise Fund, page 15 shows you the
Enterprise Fund Summary. It shows you by facility the revenues that
will be generated by each facility, how much they're going to expand
in the surplus and the debts for each Enterprise Fund. Now unlike
lar,:t year we separated out each Enterprise Fund. Last year we had
Stadiums and Marinas, we lumped all the stadiums together and all the
marinas together. This year we've detailed out each facility so that
we will be able to show you what revenues will be generated from each
facility and how much is going to expand as well as a deficit. Now
if you look at the bottom line you will see that the revenues for the
Enterprise Fund will fall short of its anticipated expenditures by
approximately $305,000. Comparing this to last year, last year we
had $485,000 contributing to the Enterprise Fund, this year we reduced
that by approximately $180,000 so the contingency of the Enterprise
Funds on the General Fund contribution has gone down from last year
this year and hopefully it will continue to go down.
Mayor Ferre: Boy, that Marine Stadium is an expensive thing isn't it?
I'm amazed that that's all we get in revenues, $55,000. Wow:
Mr. Grassie: Not enough utilization. This whole business of utiliza-
tion of our facilities ought to be a major emphasis for this coming
year so that we try to get this fund in balance.
Mr. Gary: Now if you look at the bottom of the page it shows you what
capital improvements we have planned for the Enterprise Fund. For the
Orange Bowl we plan to do approximately $100,000 worth of capital
improvements, at the Dinner Key Marina $150,000.
Mayor Ferre: Is that included in the total budget request?
Mr. Gary: Yes, it is.
Mayor Ferre: So when we look at the Orange Bowl and the million one
forty-five, that includes $100,000 of capital improvements.
Mr. Gary: Yes it does.
Mayor Ferre: And the Dinner Key Marina?
Mr. Gary: That's in accordance with the ordinance that was passed
that we would use those funds for Capital Improvements. Now on the
other side of the balance sheet if you turn to page 16, you know we've
talked about the revenues, this shows the appropriation by fund and
by department. You will see in the General Fund we have all the depart-
ments listed, we show the adopted and amended and the requested then
we also show the General Obligation Bond. These are the appropriations
that balance the other side of the revenues then we show the Enter-
prise Fund then we come up with a total. And one thing you should
note, at the bottom you will see what I just mentioned to you earlier
that last year we contributed 485,000 to the Enterprise Fund to make
up that deficit, this year it is only $305,000 and the bottom line
ties to what we had with our revenues so we do have a balanced budget.
Mayor Ferre: You know, it used to be, explain to me how the police
goes up by $6,000,000. It used to be, I used to use a rule of thumb
that the police would cost us $25,000,000 and the fire was 15 and I
kind of added that....
Mr. Grassie: You were right but your figures did not include pensions
which were always budgeted in a separate account.
Mayor Ferre: So what are you saying, that the Pension Fund in police
is significantly more than the fire?
23
Mr. Grassie: No, no, what we are saying is that for the first time
because of the change in the state accounting procedure that instead
of budgeting these costs for pension separately some place else in
the budget they are no reflected in the department and that is the
major reason, the single most important reason for the Police Depart-
ment going from $22,000,000 to $29,000,000.
Mr. Gary: May I continue with this, because it may help you to under-
stand the budget? If you have a question like that what I would sug-
gest that you do is go to the detail and let's take Police for example.
If you'll go to page 87 in your budgets and if you look at the budget
highlights and you look at the second asterisk it says that because
of reallocations of appropriations the Police Department's budget has
increased by $7,000,000. That's mainly due to pension that we prev-
iously had budgeted in some other department that's now budgeted there.
In reality the Police Department decreased if you compare apples and
apples last year to this year by $418,000 so there's not a real increase.
Mrs. Gordon: That's in all departments now across the board.
Mayor Ferre: Sure.
Mr. Gary: It's across the board. So if you look, you know that's
what we were going to use, we look at the inccrease and you want to
know why, you go right to each individual department budget and it
will tell you what the real increase or decrease is comparing apples
to apples as well as what that increase is attributable to. In most
cases because of pension you know we've now put certain things in
Salaries and Wages that weren't in Salaries and Wages before, certain
things in Special Programs and Accounts that are now departmental
budgets. We're really putting costs where they're being incurred.
Mrs. Gordon: I'm looking at the deficit that we incur in the Marine
Stadium, it's kind of sickening - a quarter of a million dollars.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, we absolutely have to work on the program of that
facility and get more utilization, more paid utilization.
Mayor Ferre: Plummer has been talking about that for the last four
years.
Mr. Grassie: We get a lot of free utilization of it.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, but I mean we can't afford anymore of it.
Mayor Ferre: Suppose we assume that posture that in the future you
know I'm sorry for the Spark Plug Race and all of that.
Mr. Grassie: The Spark Plug pays for itself, it happens to be one
that does.
Mrs. Gordon: Which are the operations that we have that causes this
kind of deficit to come about, and is there a situation where Dade
County should become a contributor to that facility by way of dollars
for public use?
Mr. Grassie: The only way that I could see that they would do that
is if you turn it over to them.
Mrs. Gordon: No, I don't mean that. I mean it is servicing people
of every part including and yet we're picking up the entire
deficit.
Mr. Grassie: If the thing is made to pay for itself, that is if we
do not give free services but make people who use it pay for it then
the people who use it, of course, will pay the costs irregardless of
where they are from.
Mrs. Gordon: We have to take a hard line on that then,
Mayor Ferre: Can that happen...,
Mr, Grassie: Over a period of a couple of years,
24
SEP 131978
•
Mayor Ferre: See, tray question is this: We're losing a quarter of
a million dollars which is a lot of money especially for the City at
this juncture. Now we're subsidizing all kinds of regattas and races
and all that kind of stuff. If you actually said, "All right, Rowing
Regatta you're going to have to pay your fair share, that's $3,000",
would that just kill it?
Mr. Grassie: Yes, it would put them out of business as far as that
example is concerned.
Mayor Ferre: So in other words so we wouldn't have race so they end
result is less utilization....
Mr. Grassie: The only way you get around that is to promote commercial
utilization. In other words put in rock shows and stuff that pays.
Mayor Ferre: Well, didn't you actually hire a guy to do that speci-
fically, wasn't that the guy?
Mr. Grassie: Yes, and he turned out to be no good for us.
Mayor Ferre: He was a real turkey wasn't he? And then what?
Mr. Grassie: We are now on a different tack which I'm just getting
started, I'm talking to five people, leaders in the industry, in the
entertainment industry and promotion industry to see if they will
get involved with the City to help us at least on an advisory basis.
We're going to look at each one of the facilities.
Mayor Ferre: But your argument is true of all facilities, the Orange
Bowl is greatly under -used.
Mr. Grassie: I'm not talking about just this one, I'm talking about
all of them.
Mayor Ferre: And isn't that true of the baseball stadium?
Mr. Grassie: Well, less of the stadium because we have been working
on the stadium more. We have gotten the stadium to the position
where you know it is a little healthier. It's still not....
Mayor Ferre: ....position but is it really paying us what we ought
to be getting out of the facility? We're talking about a $40,000,000
facility....
Mrs. Gordon: ..offset some other deficits, it ... But I would
personally address myself to the two greatest loss facilities and
see how we can make them pay for themselves and that I think is the
Municipal Auditorium and the stadium.
Mr. Grassie: Well Municipal Auditorium is strictly a question of
you know we just give it away - we never charge anybody, everybody
uses it free.
Mrs. Gordon: That's very nice but you know how long can you continue
to do that?
Mayor Ferre: Yes, but see, the next question, Rose, is this: Will
the German American Club, most of the people who come to it live in
Hollywood, Dania and Hialeah, really will they come back next year
if you tell them, "Ok, you can't have it free this year you're going
to have to pay us a thousand dollars?"
Mrs. Gordon: Then we have to say what our alternatives are. Are we
going to be able to raise it by making this facility pay for itself
or are we going to have to find another taxing source from our own
residents?
Mayor Ferre: One thing is for sure is that the citizens of Miami
cannot afford to pay for the Letter Carriers and the German American
and the Puerto Rican Democratic Club to have their dances there.
Mr. Grassie; Well, that's the situation we have.
25 SEP 131918
Mayor Terre: Well, has somebody looked unto it? What would happen
if we just said....
Mr. Grassie: Yes, we've looked into it but the answer is....
Mayor Ferre: What do we charge these people?
Mr. Grassie: In most cases we charge them nothing except out direct,
so-called direct extra costs. That is if we have to bring somebody
in overtime to provide them service we charge them for that but that's
all.
Mrs. Gordon: See, it's difficult to change doing things for somebody,
we're giving them something and then you take it away. They think
you're cheating them but on the otherhand we, I feel that we have hit
the wall and have to bite the bullet. We just have to do it.
Mr. Grassie: If you would entertain a policy of minimum charges to
which make no exceptions - I mean no exceptions - because if you make
one you're in big trouble.
Mrs. Gordon: You're dead.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, because then they'll say, "You've favoring the
Puerto Ricans and you won't do the same thing for the German -Americans
or you're doing it for the Letter Carriers."
Mrs. Gordon: You've got to go across the board.
Mr. Grassie: And I would suggest that if we're going to do it that
we start with a reasonable, not a high, you know and it's not going
to pay all our costs the first year but start with a reasonable, but
apply it to everybody.
Mayor Ferre: Do the Firefighters hold their annual ball there, this
year? Did you do it last year? Just out of memory, do you recall
whether you paid, did you pay at all for the hall?
Mrs. Gordon: Did they charge an admission to that?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: No, just for the use of the band.
Mayor Ferre: Just for the band? You charged admission to pay the
band.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Right, but our's is a little bit different
situation. The City of Miami uses our facilities quite often for
sewering programs and things that they utilize for the City which we
have no problem with.
Mr. Grassie: There's no reason why we shouldn't pay if we use them,
if we use somebody's facilities we ought to pay too.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: So it was kind of a, you know that was the
kind of agreement. I have no problem with what you're saying.
Mayor Ferre: In other words if we use the facility we ought to pay
for it.
Mr. Grassie: Whose ever it is.
Mrs. Gordon: Some of the organizations I believe do charge admission
and make it as a fund raiser, at the same time...
Mr. Grassie: Yes, the F.O.P. Lodge rents out its place.
Mayor Ferre: Well, the F.O.P. doesn't use our...
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We haven't made any profits on that at all...
Mrs. Gordon: Well aren't talking about, Don, your organization partic-
ularly we're talking of an overall concept.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, but I think we may have to think about how we treat
our own City...
26
SEP 131978
■
•
Mrs, Cordon: `ie11 we should consider our own people as being
something special, as part of our family. No really, that is the
only...
Mr. Grassie: That's the first exception.
Mrs. Gordon: It may be an exception but it's not, it is an accomoda-
Lion of people who are slaving and laboring for us, the City. We're
talking about other non-profit agencies wham utilize this as a fund
raising mechanism for whatever -• they're worthwhile charities I'm
sure, all of them are.
Mr. Grassie: Muscular Distrophy.
Mrs. Gordon: I'm saying they all are worthwhile charities but I think
you know.
Mayor Ferre: See, but the question is if they don't, you know the
O.D.P., the Puerto Rican Organization, if they don't go use the auditor-
ium where are they going to go? They're not going to go to DuPont
Plaza because Skippy Sheppard isn't going to give it to them for free.
Mrs. Gordon: Nobody is going to give anything for free.
Mr. Grassie: They don't get telephone service free, you know nobody
gives them their envelopes free.
Mayor Ferre: Well, I think you ought to kind of have somebody look
at it and see, and go back over the last year and see if we made a
unit rule for everybody without any exceptions and charge a reasonable
fee as compared to the private sector what we would have and (2) you
may as well pull off to the side the City of Miami organizations
whether it be Firefighters, Police and other City oriented.
Mrs. Gordon: City functions or City personnel functions.
Mayor Ferre: It may not amount to that much.
Mr. Grassie: But you know what happens then is the pressures on you,
for the City to sponsor something because when the City in name spon-
sors something they get free rent. The best example of this is what
happened to us at the Marine Stadium, you remember, with Dade County
Teachers or Teamsters or somebody, you know the affair that we had.
They got us to sponsor it and they got everything free. Now that's
what's going to happen to you. What I'm saying is if you're going to
apply the rule across the board....
Mayor Ferre: Well, Ok, ....
Mrs. Gordon: Give it to us on paper and let us understand it.
Mayor Ferre: The point is that it is costing us a half a million
dollars and I guess the message that you're getting from this Commis-
sion as I understand it, Father we haven't heard from you, is that's
all very nice but we can't afford it anymore.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes..
Mayor Ferre: Do you agree?
Rev. Gibson: Sure.
Mayor Ferre: So why don't you put it down and see what we can do on
that. And understand that you're not going to solve it in one year.
Mr. Grassie: No, I think that we ought to, if we go this direction,
we ought to do it in increments, in small steps.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, it won't hurt so bad.
Mayor Ferre: Okay.
Mr. Gary: Okay, if you turn to page 18 what we've done here is show
you the appropriation by major categories to show you how much we in
the General Fund are appropriating for personal services, operating
expenses, capital outlay, debt service, etc. This is in compliance
27
SEP 131978
with,..,
Mr. Grassie: Excuse me, have you jtu ied over page 16 and 17? tJe11, 1 guess that
the point that we ouht to make here is again you know how do you get
an overall picture of what is going on. In the General Fund you've
got the 97 million that we talked about. You also have the 17 million
in General Obligation Bonds, that gives you that total appropriation
of about 115 million that we've been t,aLkfng about. Now when you con-
tinue down that last column you can see that the Enterprise Funds,
that's what we've been talking about most recently, add another almost
$4,000,000 so you're up to 118 1/2 for your total overall.
Mrs. Gordon: Is there any economy that could be put on those same
Enterprise facilities? Is there any way we could cut down the expenses
of operation?
Mr. Grassie: Yes, we have considerably and that's why we've picked
up - although their costs are going up - we have reduced the subsidy
on them by $180,000.
Mrs. Gordon: I'm talking about particularly like for instance the
Marine Stadium has 318,000 budgeted to it. Is there any way that
could be reduced somewhat? ...smiling because I don't know whether
that means you can or you can't.
Mr. Gary: No, the reason I'm saying that is because he cut them so
badly during the budget they probably think they're at the bones now.
Mr. Grassie: But I think that the answer to your question is going
to need to be yes that they're going to have to be cut more because
I don't think that we're going to get them to balance if we don't cut
them more but I don't want to cut them to the point where they can't
generate any revenue.
Mrs. Gordon: Ok.
Mayor Ferre: But let me ask you a question on page 16. Now we know
that there are a whole bunch of CETA positions in Parks and I look at
the Parks budget and it says 4,230,166 and then I flip over to page
111 to Parks and I see how that's broken down you know in the follow-
ing pages. That doesn't take into account the CETA positions.
Mr. Grassie: That is correct.
Mayor Ferre: So in other words when I look at Al Howard, or whoever
is doing that, it isn't 4,231,000, it is 4,231,000 plus a lot of other
things that are not, is there anyplace where we can see that here?
'Ir. Grassie: Yes, not in dollars but in amounts on page 112. Is that
where you're looking?
Mayor Ferre: But you see 112 doesn't really tell me that because all
112 tells me is....
Mr. Grassie: I say not in dollars but in positions.
Mayor Ferre: All 112 tells me is that out of 267 positions 104 of
them are CETA.
Mr. Grassie: That's correct.
Mayor Ferre: You know when I say we've got a $4,000,000 Parks system
it isn't a $4,000,000 Parks system it is probably a 5 1/2 or $6,000,000
Parks system.
Mr. Grassie: Sure, if you put $10,000, for example, on each one of
those hundred CETA positions.
Mr. Grassie: Of course.
Mr. Gary: This only includes the supplement, it doesn't include the
amount that CETA contributes.
Mayor Ferre: If we get some federal funding for the Parks which we
don't have I guess that doesn't go into the general revenue, that
would go into capital.
28 SEP 131978
Mr. Gary: It all depends.
Mr. Grassie: Well, if you're talking about federal funding £or a
capital improvement it would not go into the ....
Mayor Ferre: Well, let's take the Police Department which is easier,
All right, we get LEAA funding. Okay? Now you say here that the
Police budget is 28,959,000.
Mr. Grassie: Un huh.
Mayor Ferre: Does that include all the stuff we're getting from LEAA
and the federal?
Mr. Gary: No.
Mayor Ferre: So it isn't $28,000,000, I mean it's not $28,900,000
because you've got to take the pension out of that first of all as
far as the operating expense but what are the other, do we have any-
where in this budget - this is a recurring question that I have every
year as to what other sources are available to that particular depart-
ment that are being utilized to the benefit of that department - state,
federal, LEAA Grants?
Mr. Grassie; Well, in the case of LEAA you can turn to page 23 and
each one of those programs is listed: the U.S. Department of Justice
is listed in the middle of the page there.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, but see what this is is this is a total grant sum-
mary.
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: I'm not asking you about you know, I'm very happy that
you have the grant summaries outlined here - that's wonderful and that
you've got them detailed. That's not my question.
Mr. Grassie: Do you want them gathered by operating department?
Mayor Ferre: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: So that we have grants, CETA and General Fund grants.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, well I'm looking at that Police Chief and asking
him a question, I know that he has a total budget, you know. Now in
the Downtown Development Authority we got into this kind of a problem
last year.
Mr. Grassie: Uh huh.
Mayor Ferre: And Mel Jacobs and Hood Bassett and all those people
said wait a moment, you know we're responsible - this Commission,
this authority is responsible for the whole development and don't
come telling me you've got one budget for us and one budget for what
you're really working with and what I'm saying is that I understand
that the Police Department, we're working with this budget but I'd
like to know somewhere along the line what is that Police Chief really
working with. He's working with this plus this plus and I need to
know what it is.
Mr. Grassie: So what we're talking about not a fund breakdown which
is the kind of breakdown we have to have by state law for the budget.
But what you're looking for is a different kind of report which we
can provide for you which takes it by department and takes all of the
different funds and joins them by department.
Mayor Ferre: The fact is that Kenny Harms isn't working with $28,000,000
he's working with $28,000,000 less the pension plus all this other
stuff that he gets from all over. Now you say, "Well, that isn't
fair because those are all ear -marked moneys for special projects".
Mrs. Gordon: Most budgets are set up that way, you take everything
that comes in - I know, but most - and then you say well ok, every-
thing came in and everything is going out.
29
SEP 131978
Mr. Grassie: Well, two things: (1) We should understand that
We don't have any discretion about reporting financially to you
this way, you know we have to do it this way. What you're ask-
ing for is a different kind of a report which we'd be happy to
prepare for you which we can do - it won't be your bduget, we
won't prepare the budget that way but it will be a separate
financial report to you which takes every department and gathers
all of these different fund moneys.
Mrs. Gordon: Well isn't that a procedure you generally follow?
Aren't you supposed to do that?
Rev. Gibson: Well, can't you do this....
Mr. Grassie: Well, we know it.
Mrs. Gordon: We know what they're receiving?
Mayor Ferre: They know it, we don't know it.
Mr. Grassie: It's just for budget purposes you
can't present it that way.
Mrs. Gordon: Why not?
Mr. Grassie: Because the state mandates a -
get into....
Mrs. Gordon: It's not discretionary,
anything else.
Mr. Grassie: ... technical....
Mrs. Gordon: But technically they're
City.
being brought into the
Mr. Grassie: The state mandates that we report our budget to
you and everybody based on a fund structure. We have to divide
it up by funds. The funds have legal definition to them and
you know we have to prepare the budget on that basis. Now what
you're asking for is a different cut. What you're saying is
that's fine but let's take a different cut at this, let's look
at it a different way which we can do. We'll bring that to you.
Rev. Gibson: But what you're telling me in this budget right
now as I'm looking, Police Department costs me out of your pocket
$25,000,000, additionally from the federal government $15,000,000,
total $40,000,000.
Mayor Ferre: Well see, they have it here the problem is that
for us to get it you've got .... and then you've got to add it
and you know.
Mr. Grassie: What you want is that tabulated and we can do that.
Rev. Gibson: Right. And what I'm saying is don't give it to
me tomorrow, put it right there. You know one of the easiest
ways to hide it is write it so you know if I have to go to ten
different places to look for it you know what I mean. So as
soon as you tell me that you know, you put up there additionally
and since this is only coming to us you put it in our book and
after we're through we'll take it out and you know. In other
words you could do this right now this is the state requirement,
additionally you could add that page for us. That's what the
Mayor is saying. Then we get a comprehensive concept. That's
what we're saying.
Mr. Grassie: No problem producing that sort of thing.
Mayor Ferre: Let me editorialize for a couple of minutes here
and tell you another point that I think is important as to where
we're at. The reason why some people want consolidation so bad,
and I think it is something that we have to understand, is it
isn't the ad valorem taxes of which we get $38,000,000 as I recall.
30 SEP 131978
Mr, Gary: $30,000,000.
Mayor Terre: Yes. It's the other stuff, it's the $26,000,000
that we get from Utility Service Tax and business and commercial.
It's all these goodies that we're getting, it's the 10,000,000 we're
getting from the feds, it's the 12,000,000 we're getting from the
state and if you divide that into portions to the number of people
that we have, we have 350,000 roughly people to serve, if we went
into consolidation and that were distributed and it went into the
total the people of Miami_ would really get shortchanged.
Mrs. Gordon: There's some question as to whether all of those would
be transferred to a larger unit of government.
Mayor Ferre: Well, let's just assume that the feds would give Metro
the $10,000,000 and that the state would give them the $12,000,000
and you know. But whether or not you're right, for example, cigar-
ette taxes and some of these other things that may not be transferr-
able but you know the City of Miami is getting in proportion to where
our ad valorem taxes are and an awful lot of goodies that Metro really
covets, you know they really want. And if you look at their budget
their total budget is a billion, what?
Mr. Grassie: Just a billion.
Mayor Ferre: But out of that you've got
Jackson Memorial Hospital?
• Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: See, and that's not apples and apples so you've got
strip Jackson Memorial out of that, that's $400,000,000, right?
That includes ....
to
Mr. Fosmoen: ....includes the contractual cost of Jackson.
Mayor Ferre: Just the deficit, not the total budget.
Mr. Fosmoen: I think it is the contractual cost for indigent services.
Mayor Ferre: And the same thing with the airport and all that. But
if you start subtracting all those things on apples to apples you
know, and someday I'd like to - I know this is not the time, Howard,
and I'm not saying that you've got to do it now but sometime in the
beginning of next year before you get into the heavy budgetary process
for the next year that I'd really like to take the Metro budget and
the City budget and kind of put them next to each other and compare
and I think the message has not really gotten across clearly to a
lot of people that if the City were consolidated with Metro that the
people who live within the boundaries of the City of Miami would
really be giving up something. It's not only that they won't get the
same police service and the same fire service unless a taxing district
is set up, it's that all these goodies that amount to 80 or $90,000,000
that we're getting like right here from the Department of Housing we're
getting $28,000,000. Would we really get that? And they say, well
Metro would give it to us. Well it wouldn't you know.
Rev. Gibson: Let me ask a question. I see on page 16 you have on
there Board of Commissioners ....request from 1.54 to .... Does that
take into account since you writing this budget and we're adopting
it, I know budgets change just like you said change from day to day,
are you taking into account the possibility that you may need more
money?
Mr. Grassie: No, we have not provided for that. That is one of
those uncertainties that we'll simply have to adjust. That I think
is going to be easier to adjust than some of the other ones that we
have but we have not provided for it to answer your question.
Rev. Gibson: Well, if we are talking about budget why aren't we
raising and why aren't we making provisions? I was always told when
you made a budget and you know that this is a possibility you put
it there.
31
SEP 131979
Mr. Grassie: if you have enough money to afford that luxury youdo
but you see the only way we can provide money for four more commis'
sioners if they appear on the scene would be to cut that money from
somebody who is now using it so that means we would have to cut the
known need in order to provide for a possible need which doesn't seem
to make sense. Now we may be in that position some time but we should
only do it when we know we have to do it.
Rev. Gibson: Yes, but i hope the rest of the Commissioners understand
how I react and feel because I need, if I need a hundred thousand
dollars now I know that's a possibility. I hear what you're saying
and I follow that but why am I not raising it now so that you perceive
forthwith to tell me where that money is coming from rather than sur-
prise later on?
Mr. Grassie: Well., I guess it is so relatively on the scale of the
other problems that we have, it is much more manageable because these
problems are million dollar problems. The problem that we're talking
about now is about $100,000. So you know within that scale that's
much less than what we are going to have to do.
Rev. Gibson: I hear what you say but the only thing I can't see is
you need $100,000 right now, that's facing you. The likeliness is
you have it, you have it facing you. How are we going to get it?
Mr. Grassie: When, Father, would that be due? When would we actually
need that? Assume that the proposition passes in November,when would
the people be seated? When would they be up for election? Would that
be before the next November?
Mayor Ferre: No, it obviously won't be, it's not this year's budget
because the election wouldn't be until November of 1979 so it doesn't
affect this budget.
Mr. Grassie: So it would be at least a year off.
Rev. Gibson: Is that what you're telling me, that they would not
take seat until November of 79?
Mayor Ferre: They wouldn't be elected until then, it doesn't affect
it this year.
Rev. Gibson: All right, I just want to make sure, you know I don't
want to go to the people, I'm glad for this explanation. I don't
want to go to the people and ask people to do this and then after
they do it you know.
Mrs. Gordon: Your point is well taken, Father because what you're
saying is that you're going to have to face up to the facts that
there are no new sources for income that people don't pay for that
we know of. It's a good point.
Mayor Ferre: The way I approach it is this: That what we're talking
about will cost less than one -tenth of one percent of the total budget
so in relationship to the totality of our problem you're talking about
it's not that it is insignificant, I mean $150,000 is always signifi-
cant - but you're talking about a tenth of one percent. You know it
is like Metro absorbing the Homestead Fire operation.
Rev. Gibson: Well, I'm going to make this final comment and hush.
You know if I get one -tenth of a percent here and one -tenth percent
over here and I get a two percent over here pretty soon I will have
25%. Okay?
Mrs. Gordon: And the most critical part of what you're doing now and
what all of us need to consider is the inflationary factor of operat-
ing the City and where are we going to get that from? We have ....
Mayor Ferre: And then the other factor is the relative value of these
things because if we can afford to spend $250,000 to keep a Marine
Stadium operating - but we do - then you know all these things are
relative - it is all a question of relative value. What do you get
out of it? If you get nothing out of it then I agree $150,000 expen-
diture is absurd. If on the other hand you get something out of it
then is it worth it? You know, we're getting for example in the 1980
32
SEP 131978
census we will end up with 3 or 4 more congressmen in the State of
Florida. Is it worth it? Well, maybe not, what the hell do we need
18 congressmen for, 15 don't seem to be able to get us enough money.
Rev. Gibson: Yes, but I learned also that when you get that number
of congressmen, I had to learn this the other day, that that would
mean Idaho would have one congressman Jess and that would mean that
A:c i.zoc.a would have one congressman Less but we'll get to add another
over in Florida because the people have moved here.
Mrs. Gordon: And we may get more appropriated to Florida.
Rev. Gibson: Right So you see the argument is there.
Mayor Ferre: No, if they get less it is because their population
has gone down but not because we're going to take it away from theta
because the size of congress is going to increase after the 1980
census. See, that's an argument that I'm familiar with because of
the charges that if Puerto Rico becomes a state that we're going to
be taking, Puerto Rico will take seven congressmen away from other
states. That's not so, there would be an increase in congress.
Mrs. Gordon: That would be but I don't think the others would be,
the others are reapportionment.
Mayor Ferre: Depending on whether or not the population has increased
or decreased, if the population has decreased...
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, the shift of population will send the government
to where the people are.
Mayor Ferre: Sure, I mean that's right.
Mrs. Gordon: But that's not where Puerto Rico stands. If Puerto Rico
becomes a state it is a new entity, it is not going to take away
congress people or anybody from other states.
Mayor Ferre: The point is that people of New Jersey are moving to
Miami....
Mrs. Gordon: That's different, that's the reapportionment and I
believe that that is a logical thing....
Rev. Gibson: That's what I was saying.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: Well, the only other thing that I wanted to point out
on page 17 is that at the top of the page you've got the Intergovern-
mental service funds. Now these are moneys that we spend but we
budget them in what we call the operating departments. So these
budgets are really incorporated within other departmental budgets
and we put them here simply so that you can see them for your inform-
ation but you don't appropriate them separately. And again the Debt
Service Account is here for your information. The Trust and Agency
Account I think is worth looking at at the bottom of page 17 because
it indicates what's happening in the Self Insurance Fund, the Trust
Fund now is at $9,000,000 and, of course, you have your Pension Account
which is over $15,000,000.
Mrs. Gordon: I have a question. Where was this money before?
Mr. Grassie: What was called Special Programs and Accounts in the
General Fund.
Mr. Gary: The pension was in a Pension Department within the General
Fund.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, true, but what I'm trying to find out is the income
that is generated by these funds, it was still plowed back in to in-
crease the fund itself, the Pension Fund, the income wasn't used for
the General Fund...
33
SEP 131978
•
•
Mt. Grassie:
of the fund?
Mr s . Gordon:
Mr. Grassie:
in the fund?
No, ?otttre talking about the interest on the dollars
Dollars that are laying in the trust fund, yes.
Have at least for the last how many years been retained
As far as we know for the last 20 years, 30 years?
Mr. Gunderson: Yes.
Mrs. Gordon: Just a question for clarification and simply a question
that needs answering since the Trust and Agency Fund is a new way of
setting it up, in effect what you're telling me is it's not really
new, it is a new title but it is the same financial....
Mr. Grassie: Yes, it is a little more segregated, a little more pro-
tected, separately identified.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, financial effect is the same on the funds. Okay.
Mayor Ferre: Let me understand this right. Now you take, for example,
the Motor Pool.
Mr. Gary: It's in Building and Vehicle Maintenance.
Mayor Ferre: Building and Vehicle, that's 7 million 8. Now the Police
Department is charged for their proportionate share so there is a trans
fer of funds, let's say that they spend $2,000,000 on vehicles, that's
part of their budget.
Mr. Gary: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: So in effect it's in here twice because....
Mr. Grassie: No, sir, that's the point.
Mayor Ferre: And that's my question because if it isn't twice then
why do you add it up to $172,000,000?
Mr. Grassie: Well, but that's, the point that I was making with you
was that this page is not appropriated by you.
Mayor Ferre: I realize that.
Mr. Grassie: So it is added up to $72,000,000 simply so that you
have a total for the page.
Mayor Ferre: But that doesn't make any sense. You know I have to
back to Accounting 101, I don't follow the logic of it that's double.
Mr. Gary: I understand, scratch the book.
Mr. Grassie: No, seriously, what you appropriate is $118,000,000.
Mayor Ferre: I understand that, Joe, I'm not questioning that.
Mr. Grassie: This is here for your information.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, but I think it is a misleading thing for a news-
paper man who hasn't had Accounting 302 to look at this and say, well
ycu know these people are spending $172,000,000 and that isn't so
because the vehicle maintenance, the $3,000,000 that the Police Depart
ment is paying for is included in here. So how can you add it here
and come to $97,000,000 and then add it here and come to $172,000,000
as a total? You're counting it twice.
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mr. Gary: What this is attempting to show you is what each spending
agency is going to spend, what is being spent - twice. I agree with
you that you know we are not appropriating $172,000,000 because some
of the money comes from one fund into another.
Mayor Ferre: But the point is that it is a misleading thing because
by adding it I wouldn't have a total because by having a grand total
you're confusing thin gs. We're not spending $172,000,000.
34. SEP 131918
1
Mr. Crassie: That's true.
Mayor Ferre: Is that true of all these other itetns , for eXattpi.e
Utility Service Tax?
Mr. Gary: That's true of Utility Service Tax also. This 17.3, a
portion of it pays for the debt, the remainder goes back into the
General Fund so ... .
Mayor Ferre: So it's in here and itt here.
Mr. Gary: Right.
Mayor Ferre: So the total amount of the difference between 118 and
172 which is roughly about 50 some odd million dollars, $54,000,000
really is already in here and it would just be putting it over here
another time.
Mr. Grassie: Yes. Really instead of having this footnote here which
you see at the bottom of page 1 asterisked, that really ought to be
more of a title to the page so that it is clear that these funds are
distributed in the rest of....
Mayor Ferre: Yes.
Mrs. Gordon: All of them are.
Mayor Ferre: Yes.
Mrs. Gordon: Then why do you have a total 4
Mayor Ferre: That's the point. In other words I wouldn't mind you
having a total, it says $54,000,000 but I do think that having
$172,000,000 is misleading.
Mr. Grassie: It's a good point, we ought to change it.
Mrs. Gordon: I want to compliment you on the style of this, I like
it.
Mr. Grassie: The rest of the pages....
Mayor Ferre: Did we print this in our own shop?
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: Was that in the budget?
Mr. Gary: We paid for it.
Mr. Grassie: (INAUDIBLE) Save a little money. Well, pages 18
19, 20, 21, these conform with state law again in terms of reporting
on funds. They're not awfully informative in my estimation but you
know we've got to put them here so you can see.
Mayor Ferre: Yes. What else have you got, Mr. Grassie?
Mr. Grassie: Well, would you like to go through the grant summaries,
pages 23, 24 and so on? Howard, do you want to go ahead?
Mr. Gary: Sure. ?That we've done here is we've separated
arated out the
grants for those approved and we've done it by the or state
ME
funding source or the other funding source, the name of the grant,
the contract period and the total amount so that you can always tell
how much money we get from each federal source, what's the purpose
of it and the dollar amount. Now the thing to be cautious about, the
In
grants award is that in a lot of cases because their fiscal years do
not coincide with ours and they overlap you may see a figure of 2.6
■ million dollars, for example in Community Development Block Grant.
II It says the contract period is 5/16/75 to open, that's the first one
on your sheet.
Mrs. Gordon: What do you mean by "to open"?
i
SEP 131978
•
Mr, Gary: Well, until the money is expended,
Mrs. Gordon: How tnuch of the 2.6 is still available, or is that wh le
amount available?
Mr, Fosmoen: About 10`0 of the first year is still unspent,
Mrs. Gordon: I'd like to know that. Is there anywhere in here that
we can find that: information?
Mr. Fosmoen: [1o, not in here, we have those....
Mrs. Gordon: Could we have that as a memorandum in add
statement?
Mr, Fosmoen: On C,D,?
Mrs. Gordon: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: Is that going to be covered in the Capital Improvement
Program so that the City Commission can understand exactly?
Mrs. Gordon: I hate to go from one book to the other, it is so much
easier for me to....
Mr. Grassie: Well, when you see the size of the Capital Improvement
Program I think you'll want to have it in two volumes.
Mrs. Gordon: Well, I'm just talking about this one item about the
C.D. balances available from the previous years.
Mr. Grassie: We'll get that but in addition to that you will also
get the Capital Improvement Program which we are trying to re -do in
a more understandable format and you will have that kind of informa-
tion for everyone of our major improvements available to you but
we'll also give you....
Mrs. Gordon: When willwe receive that?
Mr. Grassie:
The Capital Improvement Program?
out of whack by asking them to reformat it and do it differently.
Mrs. Gordon: When does that mean we'll get it?
Mr. Grassie: The end of October I would say.
Mrs. Gordon: Ok, then in the meantime you can give us a summary.
Mr. Grassie: (INAUDIBLE)
Rev. Gibson: Something keeps at my mind, that on page 18... What
you're going to do is this sheet over, is that it?
Mr. Grassie: We certainly can if you don't like the way it's presented
to you.
Rev. Gibson: We have a grand total of 172, or 85 or 28,''you know.
Mr. Grassie: We'll change it.
Rev. Gibson: Yes, well I just want to make sure that we get a new
sheet since we did it in our shop, you know.
Mayor Ferre: You know over in Debt Services which is 22 I think that
is a little confusing too. Your title is Debt Service then you see
the nomenclature is confusing if you're talking about operating expenses.
Well, you know, what you're saying is operating expenses of Debt
Service but that, you know that's very confusing. Then you have Debt
Service as a sub. That's like having under Miscellaneous Miscellaneous.
I've thrown the schedule
36 SEP 1319/8
■
CMM
■
■
■MM
■
_■
■MM
■ MM
■
■
■
■
■
•
Mrs Gary: Well, it's in the State Uniform Accounting System too.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, it's state terminology but it isn't very clear.
It should be, I don't know how much flexibility we have to change
that sort of thing.
Mayor Ferre: I saw a statement once that had under Miscellaneous
a subtitle called Miscellaneous and then when you went to the break-
down it had a further Miscellaneous so they had three Miscellaneouses.
Mr. Gary: If I may, Mayor, this is useful, what it is saying here
is that we're hitting 17.7. If I may, you can turn to page 17. You
can see total Debt Service on there, you see 17,746. Okay? Now, I
can switch you back - 594 of that goes to pay off principle and inter-
est. The other funds, a portion of the 17,000,000 we talked about
goes into the General Fund. That's what we're doing here to show you
how much of the money that goes into those funds is for the Debt Ser-
vice, principle and interest paid is how much for the General Fund.
Mayor Ferre: Now on the 17,152,000 that goes into the General Fund...
Mr. Gary: Yes, that goes into the General Fund.
Mayor Ferre: That's for debt payment?
Mr. Gary: Yes. No, it's not the debt payment, if I may, the Utility
Service Tax...
Mayor Ferre: This is Debt Service, the appropriations by major object
codes.
Mr. Grimm: Mr. Mayor, if I may I think what's probably confusing is
that that is not debt service that's coming out of General Obligation
Bond Funds, that's above and beyond General Obligation Bond Funds and
that's maybe where the confusion comes in. Those are things that are
paid for by special bond funds like Florida Power and Light or....
Mr. Gary: Utility Service Taxes.
Mr. Grimm: ... And those two numbers are so close together that you...
Mayor Ferre: Oh, that's why I'm confusing them. 0f course, that
isn't Debt Service that we're paying.
Mr. Gary: That's not General Obligation Debt Service.
Mayor Ferre: No, see the thing that confused me is that the other
one is $17,000,000 too.
Mr. Grassie: How much flexibility, Jim, do we have, what can we do
with that?
Mr. Gunderson: Well, you have their Debt Service only it isn't
supported by ad valorem tax. That's the distinction and of the
$17,349,000 almost all of the 17,000,000, 150,000 of it is over and
above the requirement for Debt Service and is used by the General
Fund in total.
Mayor Ferre: This is incoming.
Mr. Gunderson: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: This is FP & L money basically, mostly.
Mayor Ferre: Well, why don't we call it non -ad valorem
income? Isn't it income?
Mr. Grassie: Yes, and we treat it as a revenue.
Mayor Ferre: Or revenue, I guess we don't call it income around here.
Mr. Grassie: Here it happens, this is basically a fund statement.
37 SEP 131978
• ui•uiiiiiii111111l
Mr. Gunderson: It can be cleared up easily, the 17,349,000 really
should show in the General Fund as a total and not from the General
Fund transferred over here just to pay the Debt Service.
Mayor Ferre: Well, I see 17,746,000, what are you talking about?
Mr. Gary: Out of 17.7 you have to pay Debt Service. Ok, that Debt
Service then has been dedicated to come out of those funds. The
money comes in from Utility Service Tax into the Trust and Agency_
Fund, we automatically pay the Debt Service, the balance is 17 million.
Mayor Ferre: (INAUDIBLE)
Mr. Gunderson: You've got some bonds outstanding.
Mr. Grassie:
Mr. Gunderson:
bonds.
Mayor Ferre:
Mr. Grassie:
The Orange Bowl Warehouse Bonds...,
The Orange Bowl Warehouse Bonds, you've go
And that's out of the other Debt Service.
That's correct.
Mrs. Gordon: In that 17,349,000, for instance, is that
revenue portion here?
Mr. Gary: Yes.
Mrs. Gordon: In its entirety?
Mr. Gary: A portion of it, no. 17,152 is because a portion of that
goes to pay off the debt. Let me just turn you to the page where
you can see that in specifics.
Mayor Ferre: All right, but before you do that, Vince was saying
something. Vince, what were you going to say?
Mr. Grimm: Well, remember you sold a series of about 6 different
bonds, you identified them as A, B, C, D and E and all of those were
paid for out of Florida Power and Light Franchise Bonds and most of
them have already been spent for improvements like the Orange Bowl...
Mayor Ferre: So we have more than one debt, we have an ad valorem
or general obligation bond debt and then we have debt that comes out
of utilities. For example, just as an example if we were to go ahead
with the Watson Island Project and we had to pay some of the utilities
out of that it would show up here.
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mr. Gary: If I may, if I may clarify this if you turn to page 271
you will see your bottom line of 17,349,370. This was the figure
Commissioner Gordon was asking about. From that 197,250 was taken
automatically off the top of debt service. The balance of 17,152,120
goes into the General Fund and the debt service schedule is right
below. It tells how much we have to pay out from Utility Service
Tax first before we can use those funds for the General Fund.
Mayor Ferre: But you see what's confusing to me is you've got debt
service three times. The title of page 22 is called Debt Service
then out of that you strip 594,000 that you also called Debt Service
and then on page 271 you strip further 197,000 and you call that Debt
Service. So within one general category you've got three classifi-
cations called Debt Service. Now would you tell me what the differ-
ence is between page 271 Debt Service of 197,250 and what page 22 of
594 Debt Service, why aren't they all in one place?
Mr. Fosmoen: 197 is part of the 594, sir.
Mayor Ferre: I realize that, I mean that's self evident,
Mr. Grassie: If you go to page 273 you'll find the rest of the money
that makes up the 594, that's an additional 176,000...
388
SEP 131978
Mayor Ferre: My question is a general question: Why do you have
on a category Called Debt Service which amounts to $594,000 and
then on page 270 again you take the top figure there of 17 to fur-
ther strip 197,000 in debt? And would you distinguish what Debt
Service is on one page and the other?
Mr. Gary: If I may Ind like to start on page 17. 17 is categorizing
funds by purpose. What we are trying to show you here is all of the
Debt Service other than that Dept Service that comes from taxes.
Under there you have by detail what that Debt Service is, each cate-
gory. That's a summary, tells you all of the Debt Service, comes to
17,746,000. Now if you come to page 22 what we have attempted to do
here is to show you out of the funds for Debt Service how much is
paid specifically for Debt Service. Now we get 17,746, however, only
594,020 goes for Debt Service.
Mayor Ferre: Well, in other words there are bonds like the Orange
Bowl Warehouse...
Mr. Gary: Incinerator Debt Service which is this detail here.
Mayor Ferre: Ok, you've already explained that so this is the second
time you've done it, you don't need to do that.
Mrs. Gordon: Then what happens, what are we doing with 17,152?
Mr. Gary: The 17,152 goes into the General Fund which is reflected
on my Utility Service Taxes. Remember when I showed you the 4.8
million dollar increase?
Mrs. Gordon: Yes.
Mr. Gary: Ok, our Utility Service Tax has gone from 12.8 to 17
That 17.2 is this same 17.152, I've rounded it.
Mrs. Gordon: That's the extra money.
Mr. Gary: Yes, that's the money that we put in the General Fund to
use for General Fund purposes.
Mayor Ferre: I lost the page back here, page 200 and what did you say?
Mr. Gary: 271.
Mrs. Gordon: If we're really depending on this money to the extent
that $17,000,000 for General Fund operation - we are really depending
in our General Fund on this money to the extent of $17,000,000, these
are franchise dollars.
Mr. Gary: Yes, Utility Service Tax dollars.
Mrs. Gordon: 0f both Southern Bell and Florida Power and Light?
Mr. Gary: Yes, gas companies, all of your utility companies.
Mrs. Gordon: Ok. Now what happens....
Mr. Grassie: Where you will see that is on page 13.
Mrs. Gordon: Ok, what happens if you know the franchise is gone,
renewed or the people refuse or, you know?
Mayor Ferre: You still haven't answered my question. Before you
get over on what Rose is talking about, on page 271 I see whre you
jump over from page 222 and what you've got is 17,152,120. Now there
is a further classification of Debt Service of 197,250. Now why is
that here, why wouldn't that be as part of the 594?
Mr. Grassie: It is.
Mr. Gary: It is. You're looking at the detail now. These are the
detail budgets here. You go from the summary, the front of your bud-
gets are summaries. You're looking at detail here. If l may, Mayor,
39
SEP 131978
1
■ Mr. Gary: Yes they are, if you turn to the next page, if I may, will
you put your finger on 267. Ok, now flip back over to page 17. Ok?
Now Mayor, and Commissioners, the first one that says Orange Bowl
Warehouse Bonds the detail is on page 267. That's how much we paid
ME for Debt Service. If you turn to page 269 that 135,000 plus the 275
E. for other expenses equals 185,475. That corresponds to your Incin-
erator Debt Service on 17. This is just a detail. If you go to page
im
271 you will see 17,349,370. That corresponds to page 17 - 17,349,370.
Mr, Grassie: Just like the departmental detail.
Mayor Ferre: In other words the 197 is part of the 594,
Mr. Gary: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: But the rest of them are not here.
Mrs. Gordon: Ok, that's clear.
■
•
Mr. Gary: Now the 594, if you get every line that I've just gone
through, each one of those detailed budgets, add up all the Debt Ser-
vice payments on it that's 594. That's what goes for Debt Service,
principal and interest. The difference is 17,152, that goes into
the General Fund.
Mrs. Gordon: On the FP & L Franchise dollars that we were holding
as security for revenue bonds for Watson Island, where do I find that?
Mr. Gary: Ok, that's not in here.
Mr. Grassie: It's in the capital program, where you're holding that
is in your capital program.
Mrs. Gordon: How much are we holding? How are we allocating
it is all in the General Fund?
INAUDIBLE COMMENTS
Mrs. Gordon: But I don't understand something and I need it clarified
for me. You've got the whole income that's coming in from these
Utility Taxes shown in here, right?
Mr. Gary: No, see you're confusing the FP & L Capital Improvement
Fund with the Utility Service Taxes. Ok?
Mayor Ferre: Well, what is this?
MI Mr. Gary: This is the money from the Utility Service Tax
■
■
mm
MI
MI Mr. Gary: No, this is different. Watson Island comes from the Florida
Es Power and Light Franchise fees.
Mayor Ferre: Well, isn't that what's being earmarked for Watson
Island?
Mayor Ferre: And the franchise fees is not in here?
■ Mr. Gary: No, it is not.
mm
Mrs. Gordon: None of it?
Mr. Gary: No.
Mrs. Gordon: Well how; are we supposed to know what we're talking
about?
■
Mr. Gary: Ok, all franchise dollars goes into the Capital Improve-
■ ment Fund.
■
■
mm
■
Mayor Ferre: That's been traditional, right?
Mr. Gary: Right, that's in the Capital Budget. Ok, this year we're
anticipating getting 4.8 million dollars from that. It goes into
the Capital Improvement Fund firstly. We retire all the debt, we
fund the Capital Budget and a portion of it, if I can show you the
page, 3 million 6 comes into the General Fund.
Mr, Grassie: Which is that increase that was made about three years
ago using FP & L....
Mayor Ferre: Is that 4.8 million dollar increase that you got there,
part of that?
Mr. Gary: Yes, it is.
Mr. Fosmoen: Part of what, part of the franchise or part.
ity....?
Mr. Gary: Part of the Utility Service Tax.
Mayor Ferre: The Utility Service Tax which is not the one that
used for...
Mr. Gary: Watson Island.
Mrs. Gordon: Explain that to me, will you? This is as
as any.
Mayor Ferre: You'd better get to know it before you get to Tallahassee
or you're going to be very embarrassed.
Mr. Gunderson: Ten percent on all utilities.
Mrs. Gordon:
Mr. Grassie:
Mrs. Gordon:
And we get it.
On your electric bill you know you pay 10%
Yes, right.
good a time
Mr. Grassie: We get $17,000,000 out of that. The reason
up by 4.4 million dollars...
Mayor Ferre: It's called Utility Tax.
Mr. Grassie:
Mrs. Gordon:
Mayor Ferre:
Mr. Grassie:
Mrs. Gordon:
Mr. Grassie:
Mrs. Gordon:
Mr. Grassie:
Mrs. Gordon:
Yes.
What proportion do we get of it?
All of
We get
We get
it.
10%.
the whole ball game.
Yes, that is collected within the City.
Of everything that is serviced within our City.
That's correct.
Ok, does the County get the same?
it has ' gone
Mayor Ferre: Well now I want to tell you about that. What the County
did was they did not get it in the past so they used to get very upset
about that so then they went up to tallahassee, as I recall. Does
anybody remember that? Then they got a 10% Utility Tax out in the
County now that didn't exist three or four years ago and then they
went out and they got it passed by the Florida Legislature and then
they got it, I don't know how they got it here but they ended up
putting it on three or four years ago and now there is a 10% Utility
Tax in the County.
Mrs. Gordon: In the county and they're getting that.
Mayor Ferre: But I'm not too sure that it's for the electric bills,
Rose, I think it is only for gas and fuel.
Mr. Gunderson: The 10% extends in our case across those same lines,
Mayor Ferre: That 10% in Miami is for the electric bill, telephone
bill, fuel, gas, everything but the County doesn't get 10% of every-
thing, they only get 10% of certain things because they weren't able
get it past the legislature. Now what and where I don't know.
Mr. Crassie: But we haven't finished explaining to you what the
difference is. Ok, we get the 10% on your utility bill....
Mrs. Gordon: And then you get the franchise fee on top of that.
Mr. Grassie: And the franchise fee is separate. The franchise fee
is what traditionally has been devoted to the capital program.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: However, about three years ago you gave a salary increase
using that source of money.
Mrs. Gordon: I know.
Mr. Grassie: Now we're stuck with its
Mrs. Gordon: So the consumer pays two separate items, they pat the
10% plus the franchise.
Mr. Grassie: That's correct. And the franchise fees for Dade County
was challenging.
Mrs. Gordon: The franchise fee was what they were challenging.
Mr. Grassie: Yes, not the utility tax but the franchise fee is what
they were challenging.
Mrs. Gordon: Do they get the utility tax too?
Mr. Grassie: No, that's what the Mayor was talking about but they
have not been able to extend it to FP & L but they apparently ....
Mrs. Gordon: And do they get the franchise fee?
Mayor Ferre: I think, Rose, they get it in fuel but they don't it
on electricity and why I don't remember, and I may be wrong on that
but they didn't used....
Mrs. Gordon: Do they get a franchise fee in the County?
Mayor Ferre: I think they do, yes, they have a franchise fee and
that's why they wanted to take it away from us.
Mrs. Gordon: They wanted to get our's, they wanted to get the
thing.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, they said that that belonged to them.
Mrs. Gordon: I know, they wanted to get everybody, all the municipal-
ities.
Mayor Ferre: I think they get their's in the unincorporated areas
and I guess what they were claiming is that that belongs to them
period and not only the unincorporated areas. Did we ever take that
to court, George?
Mr. Grassie: Miami Springs took it to court ... Miami Gardens..,
Mrs. Gordon: They won the case which effectively we all won.
Mayor Ferre: Didn't we join them?
Mr. Knox: We filed an amicus curiae I believe.
Mayor Ferre: Did that go all the way to the Supreme Court?
Mr. Knox: I know it left the Third District Court of Appeal, I'm not
sure....
Mr. Grassie: But the County Commission has as a policy said that
they would not carry the case further. So the County Commission has
said that they're not going to push it any further.
42 SEP 131978
•
ktett. Gibson: es.
Mr. Knox: I don't know whether, it's not significant at this point
but they did that pursuant to a resolution. They adopted a policy
of not pursuing it with a resolution.
Mr. Grassie: You mean it's not an ordinance, George?
Mr. Knox: No.
Mr. Grassie: Well, ate you suggesting that they could ehaftge`their
mind?
Rev. Gibson: Sure.
Mayor Ferre: They can
dogs lie right now.
Mr. Grassie: Yes.
Mr. Grimm: Yes, but what he's trying to tell you that that implies
is that's a club hanging over your head in 1984.`
Mayor Ferre: Of course it is but what else is new?
Mrs. Gordon: Ok.
Mr. Grassie: Well, we have a Summary of Grants that we've talked
about....
Mrs. Gordon: Just another on that same point again, for the salary
portion that we need to use in the General Fund from the franchise
fees, is that shown in here?
Mr. Gary: Yes. It's on page...
Mrs. Gordon: The only thing that's not shown here is the portion
that was set aside for development such as the Watson Island.
Mr. Grassie: That stays in the Capital Program.
Mr. Gary: Turn tc page 13. You'll see in the first category it says
Franchise Taxes, you'll see an estimate for 78-79 of $3,615,000.
Mrs. Gordon: And that's the portion that we're utilizing.
Nr. Gary: Right.
Mayor Ferre: Tell me again?
Mr. Gary: $3,615,537.
Mrs. Gordon: Anywhere in here does it "showthe total?
Mr. Gary: No, it doesn't.
Mrs. Gordon: It only shows the total that we're putting in the General
Fund.
Mr. Gary: Right. ... So the reason it's not shown here is because
it goes into the Capital Improvement Fund first which is a Trust and
Agency Fund and that fund pays to the General Fund.
Mayor Ferre: Well, I guess the question is the Commission wants to
know what is the total franchise tax that the City of Miami receives
going everywhere and anywhere.
Mrs. Gordon: And where is it going... being held out for....
Mayor Ferre: All franchise taxes.
Mr. Grassie: The franchise fee is producing...
Mayor Ferre: Taxes.
43 SEP 13
Mr. Grassie: Well that is a distinction I want to make for you,
The franchise fee is up above and that's giving you 3.6 million.
The Utility Tax is down about the middle of that page....
Mayor Ferre: No, sir, if you look at the category, the sub -paragraph
Business and Commercial, that's five on page 13 then the sub -title
is Franchise Tax and then under that you have FP & L Franchise and
then at the bottom it says Total Franchise Taxes. Now I guess what
I'm asking is what ie; the real - will The real total franchise tax
please stand up.
Mr. Grassie: It's about 4.8 million.
Mayor Ferre: No, it's not so because you're telling me....
Mr. Grassie: But it is so.
Mrs. Gordon: You know I feel uncomfortable, I really do, when I
don't have the total amount of money that the City receives.
Mayor Ferre: That's the point.
Mrs. Gordon: I understand that we have to hold it for Capital Improve-
ments and I understand we're going to have a complete report on that
at the end of October but at this point in time I'd like to sure the
devil know what that figure is, not how it's going to be spent but
what that figure is in here somewhere on a separate sheet. Ok?
Mayor Ferre: Well, see you're saying that the total is 4.886 and the
fact is that it isn't the total because that does not include the
Florida Power and Light Franchise total that is going to the capital.
Mr. Gary: Right, capital purposes.
Mayor Ferre: And how much is that?
Mr. Gary: Last year, 77-78, we received in July 4.8 million dollars.
Mayor Ferre: Oh I see, I get you now. So assuming we receive the
same out of the 4.8, 3.6 is coming here and the rest is going there.
Mr. Gary: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: I get you. Is there any other sum like that, for example
gas?
Mr. Gary: Well, the Utility Service Tax is another example, the 17.2
which we just discussed and after you pay off the debt of 197,000 the
balance goes into the General Fund.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, but that's not set up somewhere else where we don't
see it.
Mayor Ferre: See, that comes in here. What she's asking for is....
Mrs. Gordon: ....what we don't see is what I want to see.
Mayor Ferre: What she's asking for is are there any other sources
of franchise taxes, Dodge Island, Taxi for Hire, Telephone Franchise,
Gas Franchise, Florida Power and Light Franchise that go into any
other budget like Capital Budget that is not shown in the General
Fund?
Mr. Grassie: No.
Mayor Ferre: So the only one is....
Mrs. Gordon: Well, if it isn't franchise fees that are coming in
that are not all shown here are there any other moneys of any other
kind of revenue that the City receives that is not reflected in the
budget?
Mr. Grassie: Yes. All of your CD funds, for example.,..
Mayor Ferre: Well we've gone over that.
Mrs. Gordon: We've got that.
44 SEP 131978
Mr. Grassie: All of
Mrs. Gordon: We've got that in here, C.b
Mr. Grassie: No, the C.D. moneys that you spend for projects don't
show in here.
Mayor Ferre: For example the Little Havana Community Building that
we're going to innaugurate in October or November is not in here.
Mr. Grassie: That's correct, that's all in your Capital Program.
The revenue bond moneys that you may have, the federal categorical
grants for the construction, for the renovation of Dinner Key....
Mayor Ferre: No, it is in here.
mmMrs. Gordon: Yes, I saw it.
Mr. Grassie: You know those things are all in the Capital Program.
• Mayor Ferre: But it is in here, it's also in here. I just saw it.
Mr. Grassie: Well, in a grant summary, yes, but not in anything that
you appropriate. Where you appropriate it is in the Capital Program.
Mrs. Gordon: Ok, whatever comes in to those dollars from those sources
whatever comes in goes out.
• Mr. Grassie: That's correct.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, but the point, Rose, is it is true in the Grant
Summary as far as federal funds coming in but it's not true of the
FP & L Franchise because it's not in any grant summary, there's no
page where that's summarized. So you know to really get the total
impact of it you'd need to have....
Mr. Grassie: If I understand what you're looking for it is some kind
of a summar::' which will cut across the Capital and the General Fund
Budgets and bring these things togEther maybe on one page.
Mrs. Gordon: Yes, give us a clear - in my opinion - precise mental
picture of where we are, what comes through the City.
Mr. Grassie: From every source.
Mrs. Gordon: It would be a very important thing for me to understand
in my mind, not that we need it in order to pass the budget, it's a
matter of understanding the picture.
Mr. Grassie: No, Ok, I see. And that would include, for example,
CETA moneys, C.D. moneys?
Mrs. Gordon: I would assume anything that we get that comes into
that.
•
Mayor Ferre: Joe, this isn't the first time we've gone through this
I must say that there hasn't been a year that I haven't gone through
this very same exercise in this very same discussion when we've asked
for the very same thing. There is absolutely not one thing that's
new today, not one including the Florida Power and Light Utility and
the Franchise and all of that has been discussed before - just our
memories may not cover it but we've gone through this before.
Mr. Grassie: I have to take your word for it.
Mayor Ferre: And it isn't only with you it goes back to Paul and it
goes back even to Mel Reese.
Mr. Grassie: Haven't made it yet, huh?
Mayor Ferre: Haven't made it yet.
Mrs. Gordon: I have to say that I have to leave at 12:00 O'Clock.
4 SEP 13197a
•
Ret' t ibson :
mention it
Mayor Ferre:
Did anybody hear what I heard about, and the reason 1
)u said about the taxi franchise tax?
The taxi franchise that we get $70,000?
Rev. Gibson: Yes. I heard there is a move afoot to want to turn
all that business over to Metro.
Mayor Ferre: Well, that's been going on for years.
Rev. Gibson: Yes, but I understand it has really raised its
head again.
INAUDIBLE
Rev. Gibson: Some of the people in the business.
Mrs. Gordon: Who would take it? .., they pay it to us,
to them.
Rev. Gibson: Yes, when it comes
remember I told you so.
Mayor Ferre: Well I've got to run, is there anything else you need
to point out at this stage of the game, and if not when is our next
session?
Mr. Grassie: We have an official yearing in front of you on the
agenda tomorrow that is really simply to get our calendar moving,
is not a working session but your next real session is Friday.
Mrs. Gordon: How long do you think Friday's will take?
Mr. Grassie: I would anticipate all day.
Mayor Ferre: Well, I've got to catch a plane for Venezuela some time
in the afternoon so all day means around 4:00 O'Clock.
Mr. Grassie•:
Mrs. Gordon:
Mayor Ferte:
Fifteen department heads coming.
Can we assume that we will be through by 4:00?
Well, let's just assume it, Rose, and let's just say....
Mr. Grassie: We'll quite when you're done, you know when you say
we're done we're done.
Mrs. Gordon: Then we'll continue the next time we meet.
Mr. Grassie: Monday.
Mrs. Gordon: I would prefer to break at 3:00 on Friday if
be possible.
Mayor Ferre: All right.
Mr. Grassie: Excuse me, you did get the two memorandums I sent out
on the dates and cr. locations?
Mayor Ferre: I'll be ready to respond to that tomorrow. You checked
it out with all of our calendars?
Mr. Grassie: Yes, it was not, as you know, easy to get all of you
but yes we have checked it out with your calendars. The thing tomor-
row is simply, you know you receive the budget officially and it gets
the calendar moving....
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Grassie, I would like to request that what you've
done with us today that you do it with the two commissioners that
were not present, I think just perhaps the two of you should meet
with Plummer and Reboso together.
Mr. Grassie: We'd be happy to if we can arrange it with their schedules.
Mayor Ferre: I think I'd like to with them almost insist that they
do that, and I'm not saying that they don't read the budget, we all
46
SEP 131978
read the budget but you know sometimes it's not that easy to tinder,.
stand.
Mrs. Gordon: Okay, Friday and we break at 3:00 O'clock?
Mayor Ferre: Yes.
Mr. Grassie: If that's your determination.
Thereupon the City Commission adjourned its Special Workshop.
Session at 11:45 O'Clock A.M.
A1'rrbf: RALPH G. ONGIE
City Clerk
MATT,/ HIRAI
Assistant City Clerk
1MACE A. FERRE
Mayor
�tttt1 �eul