Same Old Story: Suburbs Rule And Cities Are Left Holding The Bag

Friday April 18, 2008

Blog-o-rama is clearing off the desk for the weekend, piling up Gov. Jodi Rell’s apologies like cordwood – or the more seasonally appropriate daffodil flowers – as the governor sputters through this week’s crisis of confidence on the amazing, escalating costs of the New Haven Rail Yard.
Amid the daffodil petals now scattered like Rell news releases around the desk in the Capitol Press Room, is a roll call vote that the Blogster didn’t have time to chronicle yesterday in the hubbub of the House and the blithering blather of Rell on when she knew what on the rail yard.
It was a vote that occurred at 3:43 p.m. on H.B. 5646.
It was one of those voting breakdowns that happens a couple times a session that really shows what urban lawmakers are up against in a suburban and rural-dominated Legislature.
The vote was 127-19, with every Bridgeport rep, every Hartford rep and nearly every New Haven rep voting against it.
Why? Because the bill, which next goes to the Senate, is yet another unfunded mandate on the cities.
It would allow professional firefighters who, say, work in Bridgeport but live elsewhere, to volunteer in their hometowns. But if they’re hurt at a fire in that town, but the city would have to pay the cost of overtime to replace the injured worker.
Sounds like a nice lose-lose foisted on the already strapped cities.
“The bill prohibits municipalities from entering into any contract prohibiting paid firefighters or paid emergency personnel from serving as active members of a volunteer fire department, during personal time, in the municipality where they live,” says the analysis from the Office of Legislative Research.
The vote was hailed by Rep. Linda Gentile, D-Ansonia.
“This bill is immensely important for Ansonia and Derby and all other small communities that rely on volunteer firefighters who have the enormous and brave task of protecting our homes and our loved ones,” Gentile said in a statement. “The legislation allows trained, career firefighters who are on their own personal time to volunteer their much needed services to our smaller communities who greatly need it.”
Why shouldn’t she favor it? Ansonia and Derby are getting away cheap, by depending on volunteer departments, even though both municipalities claim to be cities.
“If we did not have these volunteers and were forced to have a paid fire department, it would be a huge cost to our already overburdened taxpayers,” she said.
Rep. Don Clemons, D-Bridgeport, a retired Bridgeport firefighter, agreed that too often, it’s tough being a city lawmaker when the suburbs, which are the first to whine about unfunded mandates, want something from you.
Oh yeah and forget about the Finance Committee’s PILOT plan, allowing cities to get increased revenue from a new tax on delivery services, going forward this session. Senate President Don Williams, on tonight’s “On The Record,” the CPTV public affairs program taped this morning, said so.
After all, who’s going to raise taxes in an election year? Oh yeah, the aforementioned big cities.