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Reasonable Cuts At City Hall

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 26, 2008

Look for more histrionics today when the Tampa City Council considers a proposal to privatize janitorial jobs.

Last year when it became known that Mayor Pam Iorio might eliminate about 100 jobs, most in security and janitorial, Councilman John Dingfelder accused her of targeting people at the "bottom of the rung." He then wrote the affected employees to encourage a protest in council chambers.

Dingfelder's reactionary reflexes fail to consider the city's tough financial situation. Because of state-mandated spending cuts and property-tax reductions, it had to cut $20 million from last year's budget and is expected to cut another $16 million from this year's.

In preparation, Iorio charged a team of employees from across city government with finding ways to create efficiencies and save money. Included in the recommendations was the outsourcing of security and sanitation jobs.

But after reviewing bids from private companies, the city decided against outsourcing security. The projected savings - $144,180 - was not sufficient to justify the loss. The decision demonstrates the mayor's willingness to be flexible in the face of new facts.

However, Iorio still plans to privatize about 31 janitorial jobs. The projected savings - $430,923 - won't meet the original estimate of $949,980, but it's hardly chump change. Besides, the contract will increase cleaning services at parks - from five to six days a week - and include some facilities that were not served in the original proposal.

It's unfortunate any jobs must be lost. But government's mission is to serve the public, not create jobs.

In these tough economic times, Tampa must do everything possible to maximize efficiency and streamline costs. Council should approve the privatization proposal.

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