DEL.ICIO.USUpdated: 10:42 p.m. August 14, 2008
Georgia budget crisis hits workers’ paychecks
$1B shortfall means some will forgo a day’s pay each month
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Some agencies are already notifying employees they will have to take a day off without pay each month because of the state’s fiscal crisis.
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Agencies have stopped hiring, frozen pay, scrapped travel plans and nixed equipment purchases.
Those are just the first moves that dozens of state agencies, from the Georgia Bureau of Investigations to the Department of Human Resources, are making to try to meet Gov. Sonny Perdue’s call to slash spending.
State departments have until the beginning of September to send in plans to cut spending at least 6 percent. A few exceptions: Medicaid has to cut 5 percent, and education funding to local schools will drop 2 percent.
In all, Perdue is looking to save about $1.6 billion because tax collections have sagged during the economic slowdown. Collections were off 6.6 percent in July, and Perdue had to use $600 million in reserves to balance the books at the end of fiscal 2008, which closed June 30.
Department of Human Resources Commissioner B.J. Walker already has sent a memo telling employees that, starting in September, they’ll have to take a day off without pay each month. Some key employees in the agency, which has more than 19,000 positions according to the Office of Planning and Budget, will be exempted from the furloughs.
Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine also plans to start furloughs next month.
“The bulk of our agency is in people,” said Oxendine, who will join his employees in forgoing pay once a month. “It is possible we may have to increase it to more than that. It just depends on how the financial situation develops.”
One of the hardest hit areas — and one that faces possible layoffs — may be the state’s university and technical college systems. Combined, the systems employ about 45,000.
The University System Board of Regents is expected to consider budget-cutting plans next week.
The Regents, along with much of state government, have been adding employees at a brisk clip the past few years. Since 2005, the state has added 11,000 positions.
Even as the economy began stalling earlier this year, lawmakers approved a budget for 2008-09 that included new jobs, from payroll clerks, agriculture teachers and elevator inspectors to prison guards, forestry arson investigators and people to answer phones at the state’s customer-service call center.
Sen. Kasim Reed (D-Atlanta), said those new jobs should be reconsidered.
“I don’t know any organization that faces the kind of budget challenges we’re facing that doesn’t take a serious look at right-sizing itself,” Reed said. “We need to drill down and give some thought to whether our government is the right size or not.”
Some schools and agencies are being forced to do that in at least a limited way.
Tom Lewis, vice president for external affairs at Georgia State University, said GSU has already cut out equipment purchases and nonessential travel and hiring.
“I had a [department] director come in yesterday who said, ‘I really need three computers.’ I said, ‘You can’t get them,’ ” Lewis said.
School officials have talked about furloughing employees as well. “We would like to avoid layoffs,” Lewis added.
Michael Light, a spokesman for the technical college system, said officials are considering going to four-day school weeks to save on utility costs. The agency also might eliminate some programs with low enrollment, which probably would lead to layoffs.
“The bottom line is whatever is essential to the education of our students, we’re doing our best not to touch that,” Light said.
The Department of Education, which handles K-12 schools, will likely be responsible for passing along an almost $153 million cut in funding to local school systems. The state Board of Education will formally approve a budget-cutting plan later this month. Among other things, the board is considering reducing funding for dropout prevention coaches and, next year, reducing gift cards given to teachers to help them pay for supplies.
The DNR board will vote on a budget-cutting plan later this month. Everything is under review, spokeswoman Beth Brown said.
In the past, the board has considered closing parks, padlocking swimming pools within parks, cutting funds for water monitoring and raising park fees.
“Whenever you have a budget that is 80 percent personnel services, any significant cut is going to impact some of our service delivery and our ability to operate some of our facilities,” Brown said.
The GBI already has frozen positions, canceled pay increases for agents and eliminated medical examiners’ positions in Summerville and Moultrie. For next year, it will suggest closing down crime lab operations in Columbus and Moultrie.
“We have told the staff that their jobs are being reassigned to Atlanta,” said GBI Director Vernon Keenan. Regional crime labs will remain in Macon, Augusta, Savannah, Cleveland and Summerville.
Keenan said the agency terminated its contract with the company that provided armed security officers at the front desk at GBI headquarters in Decatur. Those slots will be staffed by GBI agents.
“It’s a very bad expenditure of resources, but the alternative is for them to lose their jobs,” Keenan said.
He acknowledged the agents assigned to that post will be upset and said it will take them away from criminal investigations.
The contractors who put criminal history information into a computer system are gone, as is the forensic anthropologist who was used to identify skeletal remains.
At the crime lab, “the backlog’s going to increase. You cannot cut a budget without cutting staff,” Keenan said.
Staff writers Rhonda Cook and Stacy Shelton contributed to this report.
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Comments
By State IT Worker
Jan 29, 2009 9:50 PM | Link to this
I find it amazing that with employees getting furloughed and losing a day's pay each month, and just today the state starting to lay off employees, no one is raising a stink about the IT outsourcing costs. The current IT budget of 651 million will balloon to right around 1.5 billion, or almost 2 and a half times the money currently being spent, and that to private companies. When you factor in that 1100 state jobs are being eliminated, the overall cost is astronomical, not to mention the number of employees that are going to be on unemployment, the number of employees that are losing their retirement, and their benefits.
The most interesting aspect is that the state never gave that much money to the internal IT departments- they were always told to "do more with less," and are now being told that they can't do the job at all, and only outside expertise can accomplish it. At the same time, the various agency workers will now have to adapt to IBM's policies and use their products - not necessarily the products that they're familiar with - further slowing down productivity as thousands of state workers have to be re-trained on all the various new software packages that IBM - NOT the state - decides is the right answer.
The AJC should be looking long and hard at the governor's real intentions, and questioning the state legislators - now in session - as to why they're willing to approve a budget fiasco like that With a current budget shortfall of 1.6 billion, and new expenditures of 1.5 billion, very hard questions should be asked as to where the 3.1 billion each year is going to come from.
By Jin
Nov 9, 2008 11:53 AM | Link to this
One thing that won't be cut is the fishing initiative by ol Sonny. BASS fishing anyone?
By SofGAEmployee
Sep 17, 2008 7:19 PM | Link to this
As of this month (9/08) DFCS employees pay grade 15 & higher must take 1 furlough day (a day off w/o pay ) and then effective 11/1/08 they must take two furlough days a month - this is mandatory but for a few positions. Then as of 11/1/08 the paygrades below - 12,13,14 - must take 1 furlough day as well with a few exceptions. Service workers were exempt but under this new plan are included - so less persons to watch over Georgia's children. Basically the only ones "saved" are the Eligibility workers due to the economy as it is and having more & more people applying for state benefits - food stamps & medicaid. Child Support employees, however, are only affected at PG 15 or higher. So one would think across the board would be fair to all state employees, but the furloughs vary from state agency. Also, many DFCS offices have had persons leave due to this as many can't afford to lose hundreds of dollars a month in this economic turmoil. Good luck to all.
By lou-lou
Sep 14, 2008 10:48 PM | Link to this
Could someone answer this question. I have asked others through e-mail but have gotten no response.(Those fat, happy, idiot politicians forget who puts them there).
DFCS failed the Child and Family Safety Review and owes the feds almost $5 million. There have been extensive cuts, now furloughs(which not only reduces time with families, but completely destoys morale). If Georgia fails again they will owe the feds more that $20. How is this saving money? I have been a state employee for over 18 years and have never seen anything like this. We need to stand togther and have a loud voice
By LILI
Aug 25, 2008 10:57 AM | Link to this
Does anyone know when the freeze will be over?
By smokeyab
Aug 24, 2008 1:13 AM | Link to this
Paul, state workers pay the same taxes that you do. the pension is 2% per year after 10 years. state workers do not get paid overtime and if you read the job requirements, are well educated and underpaid. We go years sometimes with out raises while the benefit packages go up every single year. I do believe that there is waste but is at the top, the office heads and commissioner and other people that make policies that benefit other rich people.
You act like everyone in the private sector are special wonderful employees. You are a mean bitter person who complain about thigs you know nothing about.
As far as the teachers are concern, let's stop lashing out at people just because we are hurting. We all are getting the shaft from our goverment officials. Remember this when you vote.
By dumb and dumber
Aug 22, 2008 7:39 PM | Link to this
When zig zag Zell was governor of Georgia he froze hiring and raises for 4 years, and took away employees cost of living raise. Now they only get one 2% raise a year and that doesn't even cover the cost of gas alone.
The DOT Commissioner took a trip to China and then to England, hired 5 of her cronies and gave them brand new vehicles to drive and now state employees are paying the bill. What a crock!!! Politicans speak with forked tongue!!!
By Had Enough
Aug 22, 2008 10:53 AM | Link to this
Talking about a class discrimination! So we go to school, further our education, show up for work everyday, do not take government assistance, am responsible for managing and supervising others and we are the ones given a paycut..Furlough..Just a different word for paycut. If it is going to have to happen, it should happen for all state employees. To single out those who have made every effort to lead a productive and responsible life..What a slap in the face. Agreed about the tax holiday, trip to China, lottery, etc if in fact, the states coffers are low. If they are that low, EVERYONE should get a furlough!
By Middle Ground
Aug 19, 2008 7:52 AM | Link to this
Typical Republican nonsense. KICK HIM OUT OF OFFICE this fall! Politicians are all about making themselves look better while programs crash all around them. MANY people will be affected by this furlough idea...but will Sonny make any sacrifices? NO. Go to China again Sonny....but STAY THERE!
By Wendy
Aug 19, 2008 5:34 AM | Link to this
Hey Sonny, cut loose with the GAIT money. You're killing services to the citizens of Georgia including criminal investigations by the GBI, child abuse investigations by DFCS, Public Health services and Mental Health services.
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