City Council Okays Vote on Three Firefighters Union Charter Proposals

San Antonio City Council voted unanimously today to place three charter amendment measures that are being pushed by the San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association on the ballot in November, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.

Mayor Ron Nirenberg told a standing room only crowd at City Hall that the council under state law had no alternatives but to call for an election on the proposals, because the Firefighters Union gathered the number of petition signatures to meet the City Charter requirements for an election, and the Council only had a 'ministerial duty' to comply.

The measures will institute 'California style' initiative and referendum by substantially lowering the requirements to allow citizens to review items approved by City Council, and to propose new measures.

Another proposal will slash the salary of the City Manager after Sheryl Sculley to ten times the pay of the lowest salaried full time city employees, which is about half of Sculley's current salary.  It would also limit the amount of time the city manager can remain in that post.

Council heard from St. Mary's University economist Steve Nivin, who warned that the proposals will 'unsettle' city government to the point where it could cost the local economy up to $4.2 billion.

"Businesses looking to move to San Antonio may decide they are not really interested in moving to a city and 'run the risk' of going through theis referendum process," Nivin said.

He warned that economic opportunity to slow to the point where the costs of public safety eat up all of the money in the city's general fund, leaving no money left for a wide range of city services, from libraries to parks to street repair."

These will affect quality of life issues related to city services, weaken the economic environment, and impede economic opportunity overall," Nivin said.

But several citizens paraded to the podium to complain that public support for the measures is the result of years of the City Council taking actions which are in opposition to the 'will of the people,' from removing Confederate monuments in the middle of the night, to spending money on a bridge for wildlife at Hardberger Park.

Bob Martin, the long time president of the Homeowner Taxpayer Association, said City Council 'should be ashamed' for trying to kill the petitions, and he urged that 'the people be allowed to vote.'


Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content