Here’s Why Atlantic City Mayor Kept Budget From City Council
There is an old proverb, “The devil is in the detail.”
Now, we know why Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small fought so hard for the past 6 months to keep the Atlantic City annual budget details away from City Council Members.
Small has created millions of dollars worth of new taxpayer paid employee positions.
City Council Members have provided me with just a few areas of new spending.
Here’s the breakdown as follows:
RECREATION POSITIONS:
21 new jobs, totaling $ 711,000 per-year, plus an additional $ 630,000 in fringe benefits.
Total (New Recreation positions) = $ 1,341,000 per-year.
Atlantic City Council Members have advised us that all 21 recreation hires are African-American males. Their concern is that Atlantic City is a very diverse community and these hires do not reflect the vast diversity of Atlantic City.
And, City Council objects to no females having been hired.
ANTI-VIOLENCE POSITIONS:
12 new jobs, totaling $ 602,000 in salaries, plus an additional $ 360,000 in fringe benefits.
Total (Anti-Violence positions) = $ 962,000 per-year.
YOUTH SERVICES POSITIONS:
7 new positions, totaling $ 361,000, plus an additional $ 210,000 in fringe benefits.
Total (New Youth Services positions) = $ 571,000 per-year.
The total new spending for these three areas of spending is an eye-popping $ 2,874,000 per-year.
We have confirmed that at least 4 Atlantic City Council Members are concerned about the significant number of new hires, the high salaries and benefits … along with concerns that in the future, should the grant money that will help defray some of the costs goes away.
Had the Atlantic City Council not negotiated hard to obtain the budget details, the specific information compiled here would have remained unknown to them.
City Council advised me that “Small has arranged a hastily called press conference for 12:00 noon today, in an attempt to spin all of this his way.”
It should be noted that these are just three areas of exorbitant, new spending. There’s more.
We have received additional budget details that we are presently cataloging for a future report.
Small appears to be very close to losing majority support of the Atlantic City Council.
According to City Council Members, Small is earning a big reputation for turning Atlantic City Hall into his own “Friends and Family employment agency.”
Developing.
SOURCES: Multiple Atlantic City Council Members.