You’ve heard the saying, “Everybody wants to go to heaven, but no one wants to die to get there.” I’m reminded of this sentiment when I hear how some folks in Louisiana are responding to budget cuts. There are those reading this column who will take the position that they want to shrink the size of government and hold down taxes—until it affects them. I would think that everyone on the planet would be aware of the recession. Louisianans know that, despite our state faring better, we are dealing with a substantial deficit due to reduced revenues—and some tough decisions must be made. Fact: Budgets will be cut and jobs lost.
If you do live on “this planet” you will know every state is facing tough times. Last week, California gave pink slips to about 22,000 teachers and school employees. Now that is real cutting. And get this: The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit against the state over the pink slips. It says the pink slips are demoralizing to faculty and students. What? California is facing a $20 billion deficit. What is the ACLU suggesting as the solution? Just as with a private business, if there is no cash, then there can be no jobs.
Here in Louisiana, despite the message being delivered by the governor, the legislators and the media, there seem to be those “aliens” among us who live on another planet. Many seem to be civil service workers in state government. Because they have always gotten their “automatic 4%” they expect to get a raise this year too. Don’t they realize they are lucky to have a job with benefits? They should ask any of the 10% unemployed in America if they’d be willing to trade places.
Civil Service Director Shannon Templet proposed last week freezing salaries for 60,000 state employees for the next year and giving no raises, due to the “unprecedented budget crisis.” She said, “These difficult and challenging times call for fiscal prudence and shared sacrifice among all of us who serve our fellow citizens.” Templet is dealing with reality, and I applaud her bold move. Of course the employees immediately responded that they would fight the freeze.
In our Daily Report online poll [not scientific], we asked about Gov. Bobby Jindal’s recent opposition to the automatic pay raises for civil service workers. With 1,397 votes, a whopping 77% agreed with the governor. Giving automatic raises in this day and age—and economy—is absurd.
As this column was going to press, the Civil Service Commission was preparing to meet Friday and vote on the proposal to freeze. I am hopeful they deal with reality, too.
More “aliens,” also recently spotted living in their own world, are some members of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. Despite the increase in MFP of $30 million over last year with fewer students and with local school systems sitting on $1.1 BILLION in surpluses, BESE voted 6-5 to increase the MFP by 2.75%, or $105 million. That is wrong, especially in light of Civil Service taking a “salary freeze” and other departments laying people off.
The truth is, these superintendents who come and fight for their 2.75% increase [including one on the BESE board—a blatant conflict of interest], are mainly concerned about costs for retirement and health care. The current system pays these benefits for life to retirees. It’s a recipe for disaster cooked up by the unions. I’ve got two words for you: General Motors. The unions crafted a deal that focused on workers, not customers, and it ended in bankruptcy, with the government and taxpayers owning GM and picking up the tab. Well, the government already owns the public schools, and if you look closely at the retirement fund, the system is already bankrupt. It cannot be sustained. But all this discussion on the 2.75% is not about better educating our children—the real customers here—it is about paying for union-crafted benefits, like lifetime retirement, health care, sick leave and sabbatical.
Of course, on his blog, Steve Monaghan, Louisiana Federation of Teachers union president, addresses the debate over this at the last BESE meeting and puts forth the same old answer he has to every situation, writing, “the solution is more revenue.”
If we want to get through the budget crisis over the next two years, we have to recognize the dialect of these “aliens” who live on another planet and beware. We must be creative and innovative, as well as prioritize and make hard decisions. Whining and complaining or hugging the status quo won’t solve anything. We are not exempt from the pain of a tough economy. Let’s all suck it up and get through the valley. It will pass just as it has before, so persevere and keep your eyes on the mountaintop.
B.R. in top 10 for young adults
The Capital City is getting noticed. A national survey ranked Baton Rouge as the 10th-best city in the United States for young adults. The Portfolio.com report looked at a number of factors in the largest cities, including annual employment growth over the past five years, the unemployment rate for those aged 18 to 34, and the percentage of householders under the age of 45 with incomes of $100,000 or more. We were in some good company on the list, which also included cities we often point to as models—and in fact have visited with the Chamber’s canvass trips—such as Austin, which topped the report, and Raleigh-Durham. Baton Rouge came in between Seattle and New York.
Other things I see happening that are positive for young people, our city and our future are:
• LSU launching a digital media minor through AVATAR [Arts, Visualization, Advanced Technologies and Research]. The program will provide two tracks for students: an arts-oriented one through the College of Art and Design and a technology-oriented one through the College of Engineering.
• LED and LSU attracting EA Sports to open a testing center here
• The Chamber teaming up with area business and education leaders, and the Mayor, to launch a Google fiber-optic campaign [geauxfiBR.com]. A Facebook group in support of the effort [initiated by Business Report’s executive editor, JR Ball] has been fanned by more than 3,000 people
• A growing film industry, with Baton Rouge setting records for annual films shot on location
• The annual Red Stick International Animation Festival, in its sixth year, that attracts people from around the globe.
These developments are exciting to me and represent positive change. It reminds me of my first trip with the Chamber, to Austin. We met with the mayor of Austin and asked him for the one bit of advice we should take back with us to be successful as a city. He said, “Find what it takes to attract that bright, 25-year-old entrepreneur.” I think we are now moving in the right direction and have found ourselves in the “Top 10” with Austin. Don’t stop now.
Congratulations
The panel of judges has announced the 2010 winners of the Baton Rouge Business Awards & Hall of Fame, which will be honored on Tues., April 20. Congratulations to all of this year’s honorees, including Hall of Fame inductee Gary Mockler of Mockler Beverage.
This event spotlights the success and contributions of business to our community. It is presented by Business Report and Junior Achievement and proceeds go to support JA programs and students. Thanks to our banquet sponsors, Capital One Bank and Franklin Press.
For details, visit batonrouge.ja.org.
