To the Editor:

The budget prepared by Mayor Fung for the coming year is well on its way to completion after the required review by the city council. The mayor states that there is in fact a tax increase this year after several years without an increase. That may seem acceptable to many but a brief review of Cranston’s fiscal climate may cause a rude awakening among the too many uninformed. In fairness, it should be noted that the mayor during his tenure has attempted to hold taxes down but problems caused by past errors and largesse have thwarted his efforts for the most part. In reviewing the mayor’s proposed budget, the council did nibble a bit to achieve a slight decrease but hardly enough to undue the great burden that has accrued to the people of this city over the years.

In the tax burden ranking of the 50 states from best to worst, Rhode Island holds the 48th position, just behind New Jersey at 47. That is not where this small state should be, but it is only one of the issues distressing to Rhode Islanders. There are so many others that have Rhode Island at or near the bottom of anything positive and at the top of all things negative (the latest hit has this state at the very bottom of having well-maintained bridges).

Of the 39 communities that make up the state of Rhode Island, Cranston holds the fifth-worst position of communities having the heaviest real estate tax load on its people, behind Providence, Central Falls, North Providence and Woonsocket. In addition, Cranston also holds the fifth-worst position on motor vehicle taxes on its residents at approximately $42.44 per thousand compared to Coventry at $18.75, East Greenwich at $22.88, and North Kingstown at $22. (Coventry, Scituate and several other communities have frozen real estate taxes for seniors. Cranston, however, only grants a small abatement to seniors, thus making Cranston hardly a friendly place for those on fixed or declining income.

The reader may not have realized the dire position held by this city and although the figures given above may not be precise, this is due primarily to the changes that occur in community budgets from year to year. The fact is, however, the numbers manifest a bleak future for this city if major changes are not made. Fiscal projections of this depressing magnitude portend some unpleasant implications and consequences to any progress we hope to make. So, obviously changes must be made.

The first immediate change should have been for the administration to submit a budget plan that called for no tax increase. Tax increases are the easy way out but hardest on the residents. The administration could have achieved the necessary savings by requiring every department to prioritize its needs and cut an amount that would obviate the tax increase. The second much needed change is to contract for an efficiency study for all the city side and the school side of operations. Warwick, in commissioning just such a study for its educational program, has been advised that it now has eight to 10 unnecessary schools – imagine the savings that makes in their bottom line.

Another most important change is to have people of organizational, administrative and financial experience for all candidates for school committee posts. The educational side of the budget commands the lion’s share of expenditure. Candidates should hold masters of business administration (MBA) degrees or at minimum certified public accountant (CPA) degrees. School committee tasks are no longer the one-room schoolhouse variety but are now so complex that it is absolutely necessary to have qualified candidates running this mega-million dollar business.

Cranston simply cannot tolerate more poor decisions on the school side like the latest to keep school bus transportation as an in-house function rather than privatized, as have Warwick, West Warwick, Johnston and others. Privatizing would have relieved the city of a function it does not perform efficiently. Most important is the money that would have been saved that could have been used for school programs and material that directly benefit the children, with an additional savings to the taxpayers. (Unfortunately, the mayor’s office and city council let the discussion and no vote by the school committee regarding privatizing bus service slip by them without serious questioning and non-approval.)

With the new administration now at the state floundering, Rhode Island does not portend a move in the positive direction from its ignominious 48th position. Likewise, if Cranston does not make the hard but necessary changes, it also will not move from its disgraceful fifth-worst place, either.

Sam Parente

Cranston