Mayor Keller did a press conference to address the $6 million dollar short deficit this fiscal year and the huge $40 million-dollar budget short fall the city will be dealing with next fiscal year.

(See December 19, 2017 Albuquerque Journal “Mayor: APD still a priority despite projected deficit).

www.abqjournal.com/1108370/keller-bolstering-apd-remains-priority-despite-deficit.html

Mayor Keller said “Because we have a deficit situation, we are really going to have to focus on prioritizing what is important this year for our city. … A piece of that is also understanding we’ve got to find ways to step up for our officers, and we also have to prioritize job creation and keep our kids at the forefront of the budget process this year.”

Asked if tax increases would be required, Keller said, “I certainly hope not, and I can’t imagine that at the end of the day, given what we want to prioritize, that is going to happen. The tougher question is how do we actually get more officers on the streets, and we’re going to be working with our police chief and the City Council to find a way to do that.”

Currently, the Albuquerque Police Department is budgeted for 1,000 police officers but actually employs 836 with only 430 assigned to the field to take calls for service.

Money from the 150 + police officer vacancies has gone to pay police overtime and the Albuquerque Police Department busted its overtime budget by $4 million going from the $9 million budgeted to $13 million.

Mayor Keller was swept into office in part by voter anger about rising crime rates and how bad things are in the City when it came to the police department.

On the campaign trail, Candidate Keller laid out is plans for APD and his determination to complete the Department of Justice (DOJ) reforms.

Keller made the campaign promise that he wanted to increase the number of sworn police officers from the current 850 to 1,200, or by 350 sworn police officers and return to community based policing.

Frankly getting to the 1,200 level of sworn officers is going to take years and probably will not be accomplished without a tax increase.

On the campaign trail, candidate Keller said he would raise taxes as a last resort for public safety but and only with voter approval.

I am always disappointed when Mayors and City Councilors proclaim they will put increases in taxes on the ballot thereby trying to avoid the political “hot potato” and accusation that they increased taxes when they run for office again.

People have no business running for office if they do not want to make the hard decisions, especially when it comes to taxes and public safety and providing police services.

In any representative form of government such as our city government and our congress, people are elected to make the best decisions they can based on the facts and needs of their constituents.

Public safety and police services is one of the very few areas that elected officials should never resist increasing taxes when there is a crisis such as we have now in Albuquerque with our high crime rates.

On a federal level, our military defense is akin to police services on the local level, and you never see congress put to a public vote the pentagon budget.

Keller is quickly learning, albeit the hard way, there is a big difference between running for office, making a lot of promises that you may be unable to keep versus actually governing and making the decisions that have to be made that will most assuredly anger people.

One of those decisions that upsets voters is having to increase taxes.

As former Mayor David Rusk said “Taxes are the dues we pay to live in a civilized society.”

It is the City Council that has the authority to raise taxes, not the Mayor.

Keller needs to have a very aggressive “come to Jesus” conversation with the Albuquerque City Council making it clear that they are the ones that have failed the public during the last eight years to fully address our public safety needs and allowing the destruction of APD.

If Keller feels we need a public safety tax for police and the DOJ reforms, he should advocate its enactment by the City Council and not put it to a public vote.

It’s great being Mayor during good economic times and low crime rates, and miserable being Mayor during a bad economy and rising crime rates.

A Mayor making decisions with an eye towards future office or a legacy is a recipe for failure as was the case for Mayor RJ Berry.

We have had a few Mayor’s that have found out the job is way too close to the garbage cans and the job turned out not to be what they expected.

Within a year, Mayor Keller is either going to really love the job being Mayor like Mayor Marty Chavez who ran four times or absolutely hate it like Mayor Louis Saavedra who became a recluse and decided not to run for reelection.

Reporter Dennis Domrzalski on his blog ABQ Reports published an article that offers a real explanation as to why Albuquerque is facing a crisis in falling gross receipts tax revenues. (See ABQ Reports: The Cleansing of Bernalillo County)

www.abqreport.com/single-post/2017/12/18/The-Economic-Cleansing-of-Bernalillo-County

A financial forecast for the City reports that the City is facing a budget shortfall of nearly $40,000,000 next fiscal year.

(See December 17, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, $40M budget deficit possible for ABQ; City Council to hear next fiscal year financial forecast Monday.)

The $40 million deficit is being attributed to reduced gross receipts tax revenues going to the city, state cuts in appropriations to the city, additional operating costs for new capital projects built by the Berry administration, the need for increase funding for public safety and police just to mention a few.

The reduced gross receipts tax revenues to the city for the general fund and for essential services is only a symptom and not the cause of the reduced tax revenues.

According to the ABQ Reports article, since 2010, Bernalillo County and in return the City, has lost a whopping 17,522 HOUSEHOLDS representing $1 BILLION in adjusted gross income with no real end in sight as people continue to leave the state.

The harsh reality is Albuquerque may be becoming a dying city.

Following is the article in full as published in ABQ Reports:

The Economic Cleansing of Bernalillo County
December 18, 2017
Dennis Domrzalski

Last week I wrote about how New Mexico’s brain drain has been taking people and money with it to other states.

The numbers were stunning. Since 2010, the state has suffered a net loss of 17,522 taxpaying households and nearly $1 billion in adjusted gross income.

Today I’m looking at Bernalillo County, and what can only be called a sort of economic cleansing. Since 2010, the county has suffered a net loss of 6,909 taxpaying households and $523.6 million in adjusted gross income to other states. That’s a massive loss of wealth and it accounts for half of the state’s total net loss.

But here’s the kicker: during that time, the county has been trading higher-income households for lower-income ones.

The average AGI of 52,967 households that left Bernalillo County for other states during that time was $52,059. The average for the for the 46,067 households that came here from other states was $48,500.

And here’ another scary stat: the average AGI for the net 6,909 households lost to other states was $75,788. Again, our wealthier residents have been leaving, and New Mexico and Bernalillo County have become poorer.

One economic development expert who reviewed the figures said “the term economic cleansing comes to mind” for both the county and state. A state or county that continually has a net loss of wealth can’t sustain the services it already provides to its residents. It either has to cut back on those services or raise taxes on residents who remain.

And the loss of wealthy households can have some real-world consequences. The city of Albuquerque is looking at a potential budget shortfall of $10 million.

Why?

Because gross receipts tax revenues to the city have increased by about half of the predicted 3 percent. Could it be that people with less money spend less? The massive loss of wealth has to be one reason for the city’s tax revenue lag.

Neither of those is a good option and both are likely to send even more people fleeing to other states.

And remember that in the past several years, New Mexico has been losing residents to other states. The loss of wealth, of course, coincides with the loss of people.

Between 2010 and 2016, the state had a net outmigration of 37,780 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. It means that that many more people left the state than came here from other places.

Between July 1, 2015 and July 1, 2016, the state’s net outmigration totaled 7,111 people.

Between 2010 and 2016, the state’s population grew by a measly 21,817 people, or 1.1 percent.

So here’s a quick look at the tax statistics for Bernalillo County and the state from 2010 to 2016. All the information is from the Internal Revenue Service:

6,909 – Net loss of taxpaying households from Bernalillo County to other states.

$523.6 million- Net loss of adjusted gross income from Bernalillo County to other states.

$52,059 – Average AGI of households that left the county for other states.

$48,500 – Average AGI of households that came to the county from other states.

17,522 – Net loss of taxpaying households from New Mexico to other states.

$953.7 million – Net loss of AGI from New Mexico to other states.

$48,789 – Average AGI of households that left New Mexico for other states

$48,190 – Average AGI of households that came to New Mexico from other states.

$54,339 – Average AGI for net 17,552 households that left New Mexico.

CONCLUSION

Mayor Keller, the Albuquerque City Council, not to mention the City’s business community have their work cut out for themselves over the next few years.

Let us hope something is done soon before the City flatlines.

Albuquerque City Councilors Ken Sanchez and Don Harris have introduced a mandatory sick leave ordinance.

(See December 15, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, “Sick leave ordinance proposed; Two city councilors seek ‘fair’ policy after narrow defeat of ballot initiative in October.)

www.abqjournal.com/1106923/two-councilors-propose-new-sick-leave-law-for-albuquerque.html

Sanchez and Harris are Albuquerque’s political Tweedledum and Tweedledee with the way they act together to promote their own bloated self-interests and agenda.

Now we have some idea why a deal was struck by Democrat Ken Sanchez and Republican Don Harris to create a “conservative coalition” to get Sanchez elected President and Harris elected Vice President of the Albuquerque City Council.

THE SANCHEZ/HARRIS PROPOSAL

The Sanchez/Harris proposed mandatory sick leave ordinance has some similarities but yet is very different to the Healthy Workforce Ordinance that failed in the October 3, 2017 municipal election.

The Sanchez/Harris proposed sick leave ordinance will not apply to businesses with fewer than 50 employees and it will not apply to temporary workers.

Unlike the ordinance voted down, the Sanchez/Harris ordinance leaves out the “rebuttable presumption” that any adverse action against an employee taken within 90 days of the employee being out sick is retaliation.

Other significant provisions of the Sanchez/Harris proposed ordinance that are similar to the failed Healthy Workforce Ordinance include:

• One hour of paid sick leave would be provided for each 40 hours worked by an employee, up to a maximum of 40 sick leave hours per calendar year.
• Employees would be able to carry over up to 40 hours of unused sick leave they have earned to the next calendar year.
• Workers would be allowed to use their sick leave for medical care for themselves, their spouses or family, or if the employee is a victim of family violence.
• Employees would be able to begin using earned sick leave after working 720 hours.
• Employees who work an average of at least 20 hours a week would be covered.
(NOTE: this will likely result in fewer hours being offered by a business to avoid having to pay sick leave.)
• Employers that already have an existing sick leave/paid time off program in place that meets or exceeds the requirements of the ordinance would be exempt.

FEW WORKERS WILL BENEFIT

According to the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report, 72 percent of all U.S. workers get paid sick leave with 68% of all workers in private industry getting paid sick leave and 91% of state and local government workers getting paid sick leave.

(www.abqreport.com/single-post/2017/12/15/Who-Gets-Sick-Leave-in-the-US)

Elizabeth Wagoner, an attorney with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty, said the proposed ordinance as written would be the weakest sick leave bill in the country.

According to Wagner “In cities and states around the country they’ve passed much stronger laws and experienced economic growth, not to mention healthier and safer communities. The big difference is virtually every other law allows employees to earn an hour of paid time off for every 30 hours they work”.

Placing a 50-employee threshold to the ordinance an excluding temporary worker will exempt the overwhelming majority of businesses in Albuquerque thereby defeating the intent and purpose of the ordinance.

According to the Healthy Workforce coalition, 90 to 95 percent of all employers in Albuquerque employ less than 50 employees.

The proposed ordinance also excludes many families in Albuquerque by using a narrow definition of family members that an employee can care for using their earned sick time.

What is also lacking in the Sanchez/Harris ordinance is a provision for sufficient funding for enforcement.

TRUE LOYALTIES REVEALED

What is very revealing is the political snub both Sanchez and Harris have given to Democrat City Councilor Pat Davis by not having him as a co-sponsor to the sick leave ordinance.

Davis was a strong proponent of the failed Healthy Workforce Ordinance to the point he even attended District Court hearings.

During the past two years, Democrat Pat Davis has gone out of his way and has taken great pride in working on legislation to cosponsor with Republican Don Harris.

Davis now knows how far his work and cooperation with Republican Don Harris has gotten him.

Davis should now know and how much he can actually trust Harris, especially after Don Harris did not support Pat Davis for City Council President nor Vice President.

For the last eight (8) years, Sanchez and Harris, and for that matter, the entire City Council, have rubber stamped all that the former Republican Mayor did, including the ART bus project and the final adoption of the ABC-Z comprehensive plan which will have long term impact on our neighborhoods and favors developers.

When over 20,000 petition signatures were being collected last year for the mandatory sick leave ordinance, known as the Healthy Workforce Ordinance, Sanchez and Harris were nowhere to be found in support of it.

Both Sanchez and Harris when they were running for reelection this year said they opposed the Healthy Workforce Ordinance ballot measure saying it was a job killer and that it would hurt small businesses if it had been approved by voters.

NO INPUT FROM KELLER

We have also learned how Mayor Keller is going to be treated by Sanchez and Harris over the next four years indicating what he is up against when three (3) Democrats and (3) Republicans form a conservative coalition at the exclusion of three (3) progressive Democrats.

During the Mayor’s race, Tim Keller made it clear he supported the mandatory sick leave ordinance and said he was going to vote for it.

Keller also said if he was elected Mayor, he would do what he could to enact a mandatory sick leave ordinance if the ballot measure failed.

A coalition of 27 businesses and business organizations was formed last year to oppose the Healthy Workforce Ordinance in court and the ballot initiative.

The Healthy Workforce Ordinance was defeated by less than 800 votes in the October 3, 2017 municipal election.

Now both Sanchez and Harris are coming to the rescue co-sponsoring a new sick leave ordinance on their own just two weeks after Mayor Keller is sworn into office.

Sanchez and Harris failed to notify the Mayor’s Office before their proposed ordinance was introduced and released to the press.

You would think professional courtesy would dictate that Sanchez and Harris would want the Mayor’s input on the ordinance, but obviously not when you want the front page Journal coverage.

Then again, both Sanchez and Harris initially talked about running for Mayor this last go around, did not, and no doubt see an opportunity seize upon a major issue to run on in four (4) years against Mayor Keller.

CONCLUSION

Notwithstanding all the problems with the proposed ordinance, perhaps a mandatory sick leave ordinance will emerge that all the city councilors can support and the Mayor can sign without putting it on the ballot this time.

A bigger obstacle is how the business community and the private sector will react to the ordinance and what extent the opposition will be.

It would make common sense to contact the coalition of 27 businesses and business organizations that was formed last year to oppose the Healthy Workforce ordinance and get their input and recommendations on what they could support.

City Hall’s finances have gone to hell in a hand basket just 17 days into Mayor Keller’s term as Mayor, unless someone was just plain lying to the public just a few weeks ago while they were on their way out the door.

A financial forecast for the City reports that the City is facing a budget shortfall of nearly $40,000,000 next fiscal year.

(See December 17, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, $40M budget deficit possible for ABQ; City Council to hear next fiscal year financial forecast Monday.)

www.abqjournal.com/1107793/40m-budget-deficit-possible-for-abq.html

The deficit is being attributed to reduced gross receipts tax revenues going to the city, state cuts in appropriations to the city, additional operating costs for new capital projects built by the Berry administration, the need for increase funding for public safety and police just to mention a few.

On September 25, 2017, in his final Mayor State of the City speech, Mayor RJ Berry proclaimed “the state of our city is strong,” and said Albuquerque’s next mayor will “inherit an efficient city government that is living within its means, a growing economy and close to $1.2 billion in infrastructure projects that have been built or are in the pipeline”.

The September 25, 2017 headline proclaimed “A hallmark of physical responsibility”.

(See September 26, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, “A hallmark of fiscal responsibility.”)

On November 10, 2017, the very day before he left office, the Albuquerque Journal did yet another front page above the fold story where Berry proclaimed that Albuquerque was a better place than when he took office, with very little, if anything, mentioned about our high crime rates and the condition of APD. Berry blamed the increase in crime rates on the Judiciary.

(See November 30, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, “It’s never a me thing”; Outgoing mayor Richard Berry credits staff, directors for making Albuquerque a better place than when he took office.”)

Mayor Keller is now facing a $40 million dollar deficit, 17 days into his term, the worse in eight (8) years.

So much for Berry’s “A hallmark of fiscal responsibility”.

Contributing factors to the $40 million projected deficit include the following:

$2.3 million in lost funding due to the phaseout of “hold harmless” payments from the State. “Hold harmless” payments were being made to cities and counties to compensate them for revenue funding they lost when the state eliminated the gross receipts tax on food and medicine. Mayor Berry supported the elimination of the “hold harmless” payments made to the city to the determent of his own city.

$7.2 million in operating costs for new capital projects that will be coming online, including the Albuquerque Rapid Transit project. This does not take into account the $75 million in federal funding that has yet to materialize for the Albuquerque Rapid Transit (ART) project now costing $134 million instead of $129 million. Keller will now have to go to Washington in January and see if he can get the money promised. The federal budget deal announced in May only has funding for $50 million for ART.

$6.2 million more for medical benefits for city employees.

$3.2 million for a 1 percent across-the-board pay increase for city workers, but this does not reflect overtime paid to city employees and APD which exceeded its overtime budget by $4 million and that will have to be made up for from other departments.

$3.6 million more for the Albuquerque Police Department, which represents a growth class of 40 cadets, presuming that many will actually graduate. Keller has also said there is a lack of “working capital” to hire a shortage of 400 police officers, with appropriations from unfilled officer police positions going to pay for “police overtime”.

$600,000 more for APD’s special investigations division with no indication what those initiatives are.

$1.75 million for debt service on a new police radio system.

$2.8 million to fund the National Senior Games.

$4 million to replace vehicles citywide which does not include projected increased maintenance costs.

$343,000 for new positions for the creation of an Asset Management Department.

$221,000 for minimum wage adjustments required by the increase minimum wage rate in Albuquerque.

CONCLUSION

What is amazing is that long serving City Council President Ken Sanchez and Vice President Don Harris both have said the city’s troubled financial condition has been going on for some time, yet they have done nothing.

For the last eight (8) years, Sanchez and Harris, and for that matter, the entire City Council, have rubber stamped all that the former Republican Mayor did, including the ART bus project and the final adoption of the ABC-Z comprehensive plan which will have long term impact on our neighborhoods and favors developers.

Sanchez is now even suggesting “revenue enhancement”, code words for increasing taxes.

In addition to a failing economy, a police department in need of reform, Mayor Keller is now facing a $40 million dollar deficit with very few options, including severe budget cuts that will impact essential services, raiding the bio-park gross receipts tax fund, increase fees, enacting revenue bonds to encumber future gross receipt tax revenues and increasing gross receipt taxes.

Mayor Keller was swept into office in part by voter anger about rising crime rates and how bad things are in the City.

There is a big difference between running for office, making a lot of promises versus actually governing and making the decisions that have to be made that will most assuredly anger people.

It’s great being Mayor during good economic times and low crime rates, and miserable being Mayor during a bad economy and rising crime rates.

A Mayor making decisions with an eye towards future office or a legacy is a recipe for failure as was the case for Mayor Berry.

We have had a few Mayor’s that have found out the job is way too close to the garbage cans and the job turned out not to be what they expected.

Within a year, Mayor Keller is either going to really love the job being Mayor like Mayor Marty Chavez who ran four (4) times or absolutely hate it like Mayor Louis Saavedra who ran once and decided not to seek reelection.

Mayor Tim Keller and Interim APD Chief Mike Geier announced major personnel changes that were being made to “restructure” the Albuquerque Police Department and command staff and to promote community policing.

(See December 15, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-9, “APD restructuring called unprecedented; Mayor is promoting community policing”)

https://www.abqjournal.com/1106968/apd-announces-major-changes-in-leadership.html

The restructuring announced is a good start, but nothing new.

To call the current APD restructuring “unprecedented” is an exaggeration.

About three years ago and soon after Gordon Eden was appointed APD Chief, he also announced a major “reorganization” of APD.

Eden created the positions of Assistant Chief, created the positions of Major, went to a decentralized management approach, eventually replaced the academy director, attempted to increase by 100 sworn officer’s assignments to the various substations and tried to restructure Internal Affairs.

CURRENT RESTRUCTURING EFFORT

The changes announced by Keller and Geier include requiring all of the 18 commanders to reapply for their positions and reorganizing some of the bureaus and units within the department.

The concern raised is that the “restructuring” is nothing more than just musical chairs to give the impression that change is occurring, when it will not, and the current command staff will remain intact and just reassigned different area commands.

Interim Chief Geier also announced that the command staff would no longer be eligible or be paid retention bonuses which funding was originally intended for rank and file.

At least three (3) area commanders have now decided to retire instead of reapply for their positions.

The positions of Assistant Chief and Majors have also been abolished.

Two of the units that desperately need the assignment of more police officers or detectives are the Homicide Unit and the Auto Theft Unit.

The Homicide unit currently has 5 detectives investigating the 73 homicides that have occurred this year.

Albuquerque is also number one in the country for auto thefts, and the Auto theft unit has about 5 detectives with each detective caring an open case load of 100.

FAR MORE MUST BE DONE

The entire APD chain of command, must be removed and replaced with a new generation of leadership and not from within the ranks of APD.

The command staff who created, contributed or who did not stop the “culture of aggression” and command staff who resisted the DOJ reforms need to be replaced.

A national search must be conducted to identify and hire a new management team to take over APD, including a new Chief of Police, new Deputy Chiefs and a new chain of command to assume control of APD.

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Mayor Keller should consider creation of a Department of Public Safety by executive order with the appointment of a Public Safety Commissioner as a permanent and long-term solution to the City’s public safety needs.

The Department of Public Safety would overtime include both the Police and Fire Departments, both Police and Fire Academies, and 911 emergency dispatch center, the emergency operations center with the appointment of a Public Safety Commissioner.

The Public Safety Commissioner would assume direct civilian oversight, management and control of APD and the Fire Department and would serve at the pleasure of the Mayor with advice and consent of the City Council.

A Public Safety Commissioner and an APD Chief with extensive and proven leadership in managing a municipal police department must be hired, not political operatives.

The Public Safety Commissioner would assume primary responsibility for implementation of all the DOJ-mandated reforms.

Implementation of the DOJ consent decree reforms would include continued formulation, writing and implementation of standard operating procedure and changes agreed to under the consent decree, expansion of crisis intervention mandates and certified training of APD department personnel in constitutional policing practices.

The Public Safety Commissioner, with support assistance from the police Chief, would assume the responsibility for interacting and reporting to the Police Oversight Board and the Community Police Councils.

APD needs to be completely overhauled and restructured with the appointment of new chiefs, commanders, lieutenants, academy director and a 911 manager.

Every single APD felony unit would be increased in personnel by anywhere between 40% and 60%, including the following APD units: Armed Robbery, Auto Theft, Burglary, Homicide, Gang Unit, Narcotics, Property Crimes and Sex Crimes Units and the Criminal Nuisance Abatement Unit.

The number of sworn police officers patrolling the streets is currently 436 and would be increased to at least 650 out of a fully staff department of 1,200.

The Public Safety Commissioner would be responsible for preparing budgets, personnel management and enforcement of personnel policies and procedures and imposing personnel disciplinary action.

The Chief of Police and Fire Chiefs would be responsible for day-to-day operations of the departments, public safety initiatives, tactical plans and management of sworn staff and they would report directly to the Chiefs.

The Public Safety Department would consist of four civilian staffed divisions and managed by the Public Safety Commissioner:

1. Personnel and training, for recruiting, hiring, internal affairs investigations and police academy;
2. Budget and finance;
3. Information technology support and crime lab; and
4. 911 emergency operations center with a civilian manager.

ABOLISH APD INTERNAL AFFAIRS

APD has consistently shown over many years it cannot police itself which contributed to the “culture of aggression” found by the Department of Justice.

The APD Internal Affairs Unit needs to be abolished and its functions absorbed by the Office Independent Council.

“Deadly use of force” cases would continue to be investigated by the Critical Incident Review Team and the final reports with finding and recommendations submitted to the Public Safety Commissioner.

The investigation of police misconduct cases including excessive use of force cases not resulting in death or nor serious bodily harm would be done by “civilian” personnel investigators.

The function and responsibility for investigating police misconduct cases and violations of personnel policy and procedures by police would be assumed by the Office of Independent Council in conjunction with the City Human Resources Department and the Office of Internal Audit where necessary.

The Office of Independent Council would make findings and recommendations to the Public Safety Commissioner for implementation and imposition of disciplinary action.

APD STAFFING SHORTAGE

The city needs to fund and implement a non-negotiated major hourly rate increase for entry level sworn officers, excluding management, to improve recruitment, retention and morale.

As an alternative to the payment of hourly wages, a salary structure with step increases could be implemented with the elimination of overtime substituted with accrued annual leave at a reduced hourly rate.

Sign on bonuses, tuition debt payoff and mortgage down payment bonuses need to be offered to new recruits.

Yearly experienced officer retention bonuses must be made permanent.

APD needs to “triple down” on recruitment and dramatically increase the size and number of police academy classes per year.

If necessary, the City Council should consider enactment of a public safety tax to pay for APD’s staffing expansion, pay incentive programs, needed training programs, DOJ-mandated reforms, equipment acquisitions and 911 emergency operations, staffing and equipment.

CONCLUSION

Mayor Keller has been given a mandate by voters to make change at APD.

Until aggressive action is taken with APD and the Department of Justice mandated and agreed to reforms, APD will continue to spin out of control, crime rates will continue to rise and Albuquerque will continue to see dramatic spikes in violent crime.

In September of this year, Mayor Berry gave his very last “State of the City” address before the monthly luncheon of the National Association of Industrial Parks (NAIOP), a group of contractors and developers who have made millions in city contracts such as the ART bus project over the years.

The Albuquerque Journal did a front page above the fold article about the speech with the headline “A Hallmark of fiscal responsibility”.

(See September 26, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, “A hallmark of fiscal responsibility”)

In his final Mayor State of the City speech, Mayor Berry proclaimed “the state of our city is strong,” and said Albuquerque’s next mayor will “inherit an efficient city government that is living within its means, a growing economy and close to $1.2 billion in infrastructure projects that have been built or are in the pipeline”.

On November 10, 2017, the very day before he left office, the Journal did yet another front page above the fold story where Berry proclaimed that Albuquerque was a better place than when he took office, blaming our rising crime rates on the judicial system.

The last front page article on Berry had a color photo of Berry placing his hand in the $10 million dollar newly renovated civic plaza fountain.

(See November 30, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, “It’s never a me thing”; Outgoing mayor Richard Berry credits staff, directors for making Albuquerque a better place than when he took office.”)

On December 13, 2017, Mayor Tim Keller spoke for the first time as mayor before the monthly breakfast meeting of business and community leaders known as the Albuquerque Economic Forum.

The Albuquerque Economic Forum and the National Association of Industrial Parks (NAIOP) for the last eight years have been the main cheerleading organizations for the past administration never being critical of it.

(See December 14, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, page A-1, Mayor says Albuquerque is facing a budget deficit; Gross receipts tax growth falls short of fiscal year estimates)

www.abqjournal.com/1106188/keller-says-albuquerque-facing-many-challenges-including-budget-deficit.html

Mayor Keller told the business group the sobering reality of just how bad things really are at city hall and the mess he has been left to clean up.

Among the many problems Keller is now facing as Mayor and he will have to deal with are:

1. The budget for the current fiscal year that began on July 1 was based on 3% gross receipts tax growth and the growth rate has only been 1.7% resulting in a $10 million-dollar budget deficit.

2. $75 million in federal funding has yet to materialize for the Albuquerque Rapid Transit (ART) project now costing $134 million instead of $129 million. Keller will now have to go to Washington in January and see if he can get the money promised. The federal budget deal announced in May only has funding for $50 million for ART.

3. There is a lack of “working capital” to hire a shortage of 400 police officers.

4. There are wait times of 90 minutes for nonviolent crimes that use to be responded to in less than 15 minutes.

The one area that eclipses everything that Mayor Keller is going to have to deal with is the Albuquerque Police Department, our rising crime rates not to mention the DOJ consent decree reforms.

The Albuquerque Economic Forum gave Mayor Keller the most applause when he said he was not going to play the blame game, that we needed to come together, acknowledge our problems and solve them together.

The Economic Forum should have also given Mayor Keller standing ovation thanking him for not pointing out they have been part of the problem.

Mayor Keller should dedicate the ART Bus line as “The Berry Bus Line To Failure”.