On Monday, the Executive Committee of the Leon County Children’s Services Council (CSC) will consider recommending a staffing proposal to the full governing body that will allocate $819,858 in tax dollars to seven positions for the upcoming fiscal year, 2023-24.
In my view, the Executive Committee should put the proposal on hold.
Here’s why.
First, of the $819,858 in proposed annual expenses, reports indicate that $440,750 is for salary related to the positions while the remainder – $379,109 – is allocated to employee benefits.
In other words, for every $1 in salary, there will be $.86 allocated to employee benefits. This ratio is extremely high when compared to other government entities and non-profits.
For example, for every $1 in salaries and wages at the City of Tallahassee, $.35 is expended on employee benefits.
At the Leon County School Board, General Fund reports indicate that for every $1 in salaries there is $.34 in employee benefits.
And the IRS 990 report for the Big Bend Homeless Coalition (2020) indicates that for every $1 of salary approximately $.20 is allocated to employee benefits.
If there is an explanation for the high cost of employee benefits the CSC leadership is proposing, now is the time to provide that information.
Second, what programs and services has the CSC identified as top priorities in our community?
Over the last two months, the CSC has held listening sessions. The CSC press release notes that the “goal of these sessions is to provide an inclusive setting for open and honest input from those who most need family supportive services. CSC Leon wants to ensure community investments funded by the Council are representative of the families it ultimately seeks to serve.”
However, I have scoured the CSC website, social media accounts and agenda materials and I cannot find the results of these listening sessions.
Now I am sure the findings will be published soon, but I would think that comparing a consultant’s broad needs assessment to the actual needs identified by families in our community would come before staffing proposals.
Back in 2020, critics of the CSC referendum highlighted their concern that taxpayer funds would be used to create another inefficient government bureaucracy.
Taxpayers deserve answers and explanations before moving forward with this most recent staffing proposal.
Stewart: Executive Committee Should Put CSC Staffing Proposal on Hold added by Steve Stewart on
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Dr Bellamy would be mayor right now if he had run against John DAILEY. The political advice I would give to him would be to run against Curtis. Porter will cruise to re-election.
Matlow and Porter were 100% right about this all along.
Remember when the Chamber (who supported the CSC tax increase) tries to send the next David Bellamy on a kamikaze mission against Jack.
Thank you Steve.
Put CSC Staffing Proposal on Hold so you can have time to Cancel the CSC.
Excellent article, Steve. Your position is not only spot-on, but also backed with solid comparable/empirical data. The only idea I’ve seen thus far from the CSC is the desire to feed kids. Taxpayer funds funneled to and through the Public Indoctrination System and countless other social programs and “non-profits” (insert wink here) already do this on an exponential level. And we wonder why we have an epidemic of irresponsible parents and childhood obesity.
The tax should be repealed, and this whole money laundering operation should be shut down.
Try to keep up, Snidely. The executive chair of the Leon County Republican Executive Committee was in lockstep with the local Democrats misusing his position to campaign for DAILEY. He has now been promoted to the executive chair for the Republican Party of Florida.
Did you miss getting the misogynistic Republican Party ad that featured Kristen Dozier saying not to vote for her which was a back door way to say vote for Dailey?
He just couldn’t stay in his lane and help Republicans or do his job for Republicans; he thinks that the Republicans are too stupid to know who to vote for and misused his position by allowing this misogynistic ad to promote DAILEY. How does someone get to be elected the vice chair of the Republican Party of Florida when the county he was responsible for could never even get one Republican elected?
Hoping the best governor in America picks up on this nonsense and does some house cleaning.
Hey here is a thought:
Cleaning up Tallahassee’s corrupt local government by sending in the FDLE would legally play out in a court of law to just maybe 4 to 6 months prior to the Presidental election.
Golly I wish someone knew of a Govorner that may be running for POTUS who could use such a rocket launch boost in political glory just 4 to 6 months prior to the polls opening up for the Presidental voting.
There is really no legal reason a Govorner that may be running for POTUS should consider just sitting on his hands and allowing the corrupt leftist controlled FBI to maybe investigate and positivally put their hand on the scale of justice to exorenate a bunch of corruption in Florida’s Capital City. Nope no legal reason at all.
And just think how good it would look on a national level 4 to 6 months out from the election to bring the hammer of justice down on some deserving heads.
Oh well just kind of thinking out loud here. I’m sure there are a million reasons my thoughts are a bad idea. And I’m sure thatTallahassee’s local Nannies have nothing to worry about.
But just in case anybody out there actually knows a Govorner that may be running for POTUS I was thinking that maybe you could pass this idea along.
The letter by the mayor’s wife recommending the executive director for the CSC position was not in the best interest of the citizens and was a political benefit for themselves. It is unfortunate that the executive committee went with this executive director even though she has ties to the Gillum campaign indictments. The committee should be disbanded on their choice of the executive director alone.
The disbursement by the CSC executive director of $100,000 to the Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce should be investigated for a criminal action of misuse of funds. The investigations should seek out indictments against the executive director for making a disbursement and for whoever used the funds at the Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce.
This is nothing more than a criminal enterprise and all those involved should be held accountable.
The corrupt politicians that run this town have created an entire office of patronage jobs where none of the people will ever do any service for any children. The reason why they have an extremely high salary to benefit ratio is because the children are an afterthought.
We have plenty of good local citizens who would love to volunteer to serve on the CSC Board for no salary. Whats the deal which requires the CSC to be paid positions?