Jun 28, 2008 4:28 pm US/Central
Gary Mayor Will Fuel City-Leased Hummer
Clay 'Everyone Will Have to Make a Sacrifice to Keep City Running
GARY, Ind. (Post-Tribune) ―
Gary, Ind. Mayor Rudy Clay said he will "immediately" begin paying out of his own pocket to fuel his city-leased Hummer H3, and he is calling on Gary's other elected leaders to do the same.
The rule will apply to all city employees, except for police and firefighters, as of July 1, Clay said.
"You've got to lead by example," Clay said. "There's no question the city's in a financial crisis."
Clay made his announcement as grumbling grew among employees wondering how Gary, Ind. will deal with its 2009 budget woes.
The city is spending $30,000 a week on gas, Clay has said, while new property tax laws threaten to cut its budget by a third.
Despite a previous rule that only the mayor, police and firefighters should be tapping into city pumps, records obtained by the Post-Tribune revealed that several city employees and department heads are fueling up.
Gary's only other elected officials with take-home cars, according to city records, are City Clerk Suzette Raggs and City Judge Deidre Monroe.
Monroe has said she "sometimes" fuels her city car at city pumps.
On Friday, she said she will consider the mayor's request, but she doesn't expect to change her behavior.
"More likely than not," Monroe said, "if it's something that has to do with the city and my job, I probably will not be paying for my own gas."
Raggs didn't return a call for comment Friday.
Clay hasn't ruled out layoffs by the end of the year, but he said Friday that no such decisions are imminent.
That didn't satisfy Harold Marsh, a paramedic supervisor and steward for Service Employees International Union Local 20.
He said city officials have asked his union for concessions, including a cut in certification and longevity pay.
Marsh said it won't happen.
"Not as long as the fire and police aren't giving concessions," Marsh said.
Del Stout and Raynard Robinson, leaders of the police and firefighters' unions, respectively, said concessions are out of the question for their members, and they are supporting the SEIU's position.
"We have nothing to give to the city," Robinson said.
Clay said he wasn't aware the city had asked for any concessions, but he said everyone will have to make a sacrifice to keep the city running.
"That's just the lay of the land," Clay said.
(CBS 2 and the Post-Tribune are news partners covering stories in the communities of northwest Indiana. Send story tips to tips@cbs2chicago.com. (© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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