Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson is keenly aware that the Augusta Commission’s spending spree during the Covid pandemic is unsustainable; however, half of those on the commission are adamantly against any measure that will save the taxpayers money.
During Covid, the commission used federal American Rescue Plan funds to hand out across-the-board raises to city employees with no plan to sustain those raises once the federal money ran out.
Now, the federal money has run out, and there still is no plan to fund a nearly billion dollar budget aside from some vague “right-sizing” scheme cooked up by the interim city administrator.
At last week’s commission meeting, Johnson proposed that the city task department heads with presenting to the commission ways that the various departments could cut the annual budget by five to 10 percent.
Johnson has already led by example. He has cut the Mayor’s Office budget by not accepting a city vehicle and paying for his own travel expenses. Johnson uses the same cell phone that he used before assuming office.
However, the block led by Jordan Johnson and Bobby Williams harpooned the idea that the city could become more effective in its duties by cutting some of the fat out of the budget.
Mind you, the mayor was not asking that departments be required to cut their budgets, only that they seek out ways where they could cut their budgets.
Even when the original motion was changed to a cut of 3 percent to 5 percent, Williams and his crew balked.
Ultimately, because two commissioners that might have voted for the cuts were absent, a tie vote did not occur; however, if the past is any guide, Williams et. al. would have used an abstention to prevent the mayor breaking a tie.
This is yet another reason voters need to allow the mayor a vote in the upcoming referendum. The time has come for Augusta to have a mayor that has more responsibilities than hosting community clean-ups and cutting ribbons.
Johnson has very few tools in his kit, but he has learned how to use a butter knife as a screwdriver, and we applaud him for that. Now it is time for the citizens to give the mayor the tools he needs to move the city forward.
