Just reeks of desperation.
Guy is just so badly misreading the room lately.
Jacksonville City Council Member Ron Salem will hold a meeting on Tuesday at City Hall to discuss a possible effort he’s referring to as “Duval DOGE.”
The meeting will come as DOGE’s efforts at the federal and state levels to eliminate “unnecessary” spending to ensure government efficiency are already underway.https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/2025/03/06/is-doge-coming-to-jacksonville-council-member-will-hold-meeting-to-discuss-local-efforts/
“We are looking at some very difficult budgets going forward,” Salem said. “We’re looking at deficits anywhere from $70-$100 million dollars over the next two, three years. And I think it’s time that we put forth an effort to try to tighten our belts and try to save some money.”
Instead of cutting City services that are many times underfunded already, how about a small increase in the lower end property tax millage rate, redirecting the gas tax from U2C to road paving, undoing the Curry pension fund sales tax fiasco, supporting the garbage fee increase after 10 to 15 years of no change, etc. Do you think you can cut enough expenses to pay for a new jail, new JSO HQ's, the stadium, a new convention center, septic tank conversions, paying off the garbage fee deficit, fully funding pensions, properly funding City parks, increasing JSO funding, etc.? Revenue enhancement is just as critical as expense management to balance a budget.
Salem also said his recommendation for the effort is to leave out what many consider to be core government, including police, fire, and garbage collection.
Well, he just took about 50% or more of City expenses off the table (If Federal DOGE doesn't touch Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and other contractually "locked in" expenses, 70% of the Federal budget will be off the table too). Don't want to lose the fire and police union support at election time, huh? How about cutting back incentives to developers including monies for Khan's projects? No? I didn't think so. Is that also off the table? Don't want to lose those supporters either? Is his City Council salary eligible for such a review?
So, what does he want to look at? Our underfunded parks and recreation? Our underfunded public works? Septic tank conversions to sewers? Capital and maintenance expenditures? Are we going after the 1% and less expenditures like Musk, making a big deal of cutting them out, and in the end, not impacting the total budget one nit? Let's start with the District Council members individual slush funds and their donations to "nonprofits" that their colleagues and friends work for. Ready for that review?
Don't we have a City auditor? Isn't this their job? Where was this suggestion when fellow Republican Curry was mayor?
I am all for efficiencies but let's not politicize it and selectively enforce it. Don't indiscriminately cut meat and bone, not just fat, like Musk is doing and, in the end, reducing efficiencies, not enhancing them. And why would you exempt 50%+ of the budget from review? You don't think you could find some "inefficiencies" at JSO and JFRD? They are that much better than other City departments?
“Well, depending on the extent of the deficits we have, there might be some belt-tightening that could include people,” Salem responded. “When you’ve got deficits like that, it’s hard not to make that kind of balance the budget, as we have to do in Jacksonville. We have a balanced budget, sometimes without involving people. They may be vacant positions that aren’t filled or various ways that you can cut positions without necessarily cutting people.”
Reducing positions is cutting people (i.e. people available to deliver City services, not necessarily just people let go), no matter how you slice it. I bet most of the City budget is for salaries so you can be sure he is after cutting people in the end. See Federal DOGE.
