Salvation Army - Doesn't want our money?

Sometimes I think the Salvation Army gets the award for being most ungrateful. Or for being the biggest scammers when it comes to fundraising. Their latest comes from today's article in the Wisconsin State Journal.

Now, its no secret that I'm not a big fan of their religion based homophobic services that they provide, but I'm also not a big fan of the way they fundraise, it gives all non-profits a bad reputation. Last year, the only reason they couldn't open the warming shelter was because they didn't have the staff. This year, they denied knowing anything about the money requested by the Homeless Consortium and now they claim that they don't have the space. Someone want to let Major Moore know that the Salvation Army is a member of the Homeless Consortium and that it was discussed at their meetings for months?

I don't get it. The "space" for the year round warming shelter, which is admittedly far from ideal, is some mattresses on the floor in the hallway for 14 people. If its available in the winter time, why isn't it available the rest of the year? Are they "crying wolf" again? Or do they simply not want to provide these services to the homeless? Read more!

Salvation Army outdoes themselves!

Obviously, I was already of the opinion that the Salvation Army has no shame . . . and you'd think they'd stop with their unethical fundraising tactics, but no . . .

A friend of mine pointed out this article that came out on December 6th (note that date) in the Neighbors insert that the Madison Newspapers does:

Warming Shelter Needed for homeless families
The community has asked The Salvation Army to provide a warming shelter for Dane County's homeless families who have no place to go. During the winter months it becomes too cold for families to live in their vehicles while on the waiting list for a room in a homeless shelter.

"The Salvation Army does not have money in our budget to cover the cost of the warming shelter without sacrificing our other important services. I am asking the community to assist us in keeping these families safe and warm," said Maj. Paul Moore, Dane County coordinator."

The estimated cost to operate the warming shelter for five months is $30,000. The Salvation Army estimates 775 shelter nights will be used and 1,550 meals served over the next five months.

And the story goes on. What gave me pause was the fact that the City gave them $25,000 in this year's budget for the warming shelter. That budget passed on November 16th. And the County gave them $20,000. The County's budget also passed on November 16th. So they have $45,000 to run their $30,000 program and three weeks later they're still asking the public for money?

I'm just disgusted, but not surprised. These types of fundraising tactics should be illegal. Maybe if they raise some extra money they could at least pay their bellringers a living wage instead of $6.50 per hour? Read more!

City Budget: Where it's at . . . (Part III: Operating Budget)

All that, for $1.03 increase over the Mayor's budget (with changes made at the Board of Estimates) on the average homeowner's tax bill . . . have mercy on my grammar etc today . . . I'm a little tired, but here it is . . . .

The first motion of the evening was to place the following items on file:

• Amendment #7 - cutting $100,000 for the downtown safety initiative
• Amendment #8 - cutting $300,000 from the affordable housing trust fund
• Amendment #9 - cutting $200,000 from the affordable housing trust fund
• Amendment #10 - adding $200,000 to the affordable housing trust fund (Ald. King added that in there as a show of good will)
  
• Amendment #12 - cutting funding for the police department Management Information Specialist and adding money for overtime actually added $4,250
• Amendment #14 - cutting $4,579 from the Common Council budget
• Amendment #15 - cutting $10,013 from the Mayor's budget
• Amendment #18 - requiring us to to zero-based budgeting
• Amendment #19 - cutting $8,008 for an Occupational Accommodations Specialist
• Amendment #32 - cutting $37,531 from various afterschool and summer youth programs and childcare
• Amendment #33 - cutting $89,200 from the agency that would replace the Women's Transit Authority
• Amendment #34 - cutting $44,375 for the ARC Community Services/Respect program (prostitute rehabilitation)
• Amendment #37 - cutting funding to existing planning councils by dividing their money among 4 planning councils instead of three

Ald. Brandon, knowing he didn't have the votes, offered to essentially withdraw those items from consideration. Needless to say, it was unanimous. And we all appreciate Ald. Brandon's decision to do that and the good nature in which he took the bit of teasing we gave to him. That couldn't have been easy.

Amendment #11 - A substitute motion was made to do the following:

Increase General Fund Room Tax Revenue by $350,000 from $683,200 to $1,033,200 and provide Room Tax Funding of $350,000 to decrease the General Fund subsidy to the Overture Center.

This effectively uses 1/2 of the additional revenue generated by increasing the Room Tax rate from 8% to 9% to reduce the property tax levy. This amendment also results in a decrease of $350,000 in the projected balance available in the Room Tax Fund at the end of 2007.

This amendment included a "Footnote to council members: Those voting "YES" last year...Konkel, Cnare, Verveer, Webber, Olson, Brandon, King, Golden, Benford, Palm (Gruber excused). And he's right, last year, I made essentially the same motion(s).

Amendment #10 - Agency/Service: Room Tax Fund/Estimated Total Room Tax Receipts - Page(s): 16
Sponsor(s): Alds. Konkel, King

Raise the Room tax by .5 percent (from 8 percent to 8.5 percent).

Room Tax Receipts (Increase) $ (430,000)
Total $ (430,000) Levy Impact: $ -
(Note: Funding is in the Room Tax Fund; therefore, there is no impact on the levy.)
Amendment No. 11

Agency/Service: Room Tax Fund/Transfer to Overture Center
Page(s): 16, 78; Supplement page 73
Sponsor(s): Alds. Konkel, King

Provide Room Tax funding of $430,000 to decrease the General Fund subsidy to the Overture Center.

Room Tax Uses/Other $ 4 30,000
Overture/Trf. From Room Tax (new) $ (430,000)
Total $ - Levy Impact: $(430,000)

This year, the votes were as follows:
Yes - Webber, Benford, Brandon, Cnare, Golden, Gruber, King, Konkel, Palm, Sanborn, Skidmore
No - Bruer, Compton, Knox, Olson, Radomski, Rosas, Thomas, VanRooy, Verveer

Interesting set of flip-flops.

Amendment #13 - The original amendment would have made the 10 new police officers neighborhood officers. After asking the police chief some questions about previous police staffing committees and the plan for how they were spending the $50,000 for a staffing study, I offered the following substitute:

A police staffing subcommittee shall be established by the Common Council to review the police staffing report funded in the 2007 budget, if completed, and shall make recommendations to the Common Council and Police Chief which shall include, but not be limited to recommendations regarding the number of neighborhood officers, the staffing levels for Community Policing Teams and other community policing initiatives. This committee shall report back to the Common Council by October 1, 2007.

There were several amendments and friendly amendments to this and we voted on if the language should just say:

A committee shall be established by the Common Council to provide input in the creation of a the police staffing report funded in the 2007 budget.

That motion failed on a voice vote.

Then we went back to the substitute language above. At issue was whether the Council gets input into major policing philosophy changes or if we just hire the police cheif and let him make the decisions. I was hoping we could have a community discussion about what community policing means to us. However, that motion failed. Votes were as follows:
Yes - Webber, Benford, King, Konkel, Olson, Sanborn, Skidmore, Verveer
No - Brandon, Bruer, Cnare, Compton, Gruber, Knox, Palm, Radomski, Rosas, Thomas, VanRooy
Present: Golden (this essentially means they don't cast a vote in favor or against)

Amendment #16 - $19,371 for AASPIRE interns - passed on a voice vote

Amendment #17 - $10,000 for sign language interpreters - passed on a voice vote.

Amendment #20 - There was a substitute motion that add 2 arborists instead of the 6 that were originally proposed. I'll have to find that motion and come back and fill in the details. The motion passed on a voice vote

Amendment #22 - Raised admission prices for the pool. $.25 for children, $.50 for adults and $10 for seasonal passes. The motion passed.
Yes: Benford, Brandon, Bruer, Cnare, Compton, Golden, Knox, Olson, Palm, Radomski, Sanborn, Skidmore, Thomas, VanRooy, Verveer
No: Webber, Gruber, King, Konkel, Rosas

Amendment #23 - This amendment was originally in the motion to place on file by Ald. Brandon, but Ald. King pulled it out of that motion. It would have saved $15,000 and then spent $500 for the fans. It would have had no impact on the taxpayer as the saved money would have gone into a reserve for the Pool. The motion would have denied air conditioning to the concession stands at the swimming pool and instead, put in fans. The discussion was about if we owed it to our hot sweaty employees to provide air conditioning in a place that was often over 100 degrees and air condition the outdoors, or if we should save money and have unhappy, uncomfortable employees working in miserable conditions. It was a tough one for many. Alders Webber and Golden voted present/abstained. The motion failed.
Yes: Brandon, Cnare, Compton, King, Palm, Sanborn, Skidmore, Thomas
No: Benford, Bruer, Golden, Gruber, Knox, Konkel, Olson, Radomski, VanRooy, Verveer

Amendment #24 - $5,000 for AASPIRE intern for the Office of the Director of Planning and Development. Passed on a voice vote without comment.

Amendment #25 - There was a substitute to the proposed amendment that would have referred the reorganization of the Department of Planning and Development to the Common Council Organizational Committee. That amendment read as follows:

Department of Planning and Development Reorganization:

1. The Budget is intended to make the necessary financial changes to allow the Department of Planning and Development reorganization to go forward.

2. Implementation of the department and unit name changes and the creation of the proposed Economic Development Unit to be made up of the Office of Business Resources, the current Community and Economic Development Unit, Real Estate, Community Development Block Grant Office, Office of Community Services and the Senior Center shall be subject to further approval of the Common Council by majority vote. These issues will be taken up when the Common Council considers ordinance #04859. Ordinance #04859 is hereby additionally referred to the Plan Commission. Rejection or alterations of the ordinance shall be accomplished by a simple majority vote. Rejection or alterations will not require a budget amendment.

3. The issue of Neighborhood Services shall be further studied by a joint committee of two (2) plan commissioners, two (2) Community Development Block Grant commissioners, two (2) members of the Office of Community Services commissioners and 1 mayoral appointment. This group shall study services to neighborhoods and, after consulting with planning councils and neighborhood associations, report their recommendations to the Common Council by June 1, 2007 for consideration in the 2008 budget. This committee shall be staffed by the Director of Planning and Development and/or his designee.

This passed without comment on a voice vote.

Amendment #26 - $50,000 for neighborhood planning grants. Passed on a voice vote.

Amendment #27 - $5,000 for "Jobs with a Future". Passed on a voice vote.

Amendment #28 - $41,280 for a "Neighborhood Ombudsman. This was placed on file because of Amendment #25 in hopes that the committee in #3 can discuss this and make a recommendation.

Amendment #29 - $18,920 in savings because it will take time to hire the new Neighborhood Planner. Passed on a voice vote.

Amendment #30 - $25,000 for the Salvation Army for the warming shelter. Passed on a voice vote.

Amendment #31 - $30,000 for the Wisconsin Youth Company for running a neighborhood center and afterschool child care programming. Passed on a voice vote.

Amendment #35 - $21,000 to TlJ. Brokerage Firm to provide 12-week life skills training program for low-income or disadvantaged adults. Passed on a voice vote.

Amendment # 36 - $33,000 for the Westside Planning Council. Alot of discussion on this one. Mostly the issue was whether they were ready and/or if there was enough support. Motion passed.
Yes: Webber, Benford, Bruer, Gruber, King, Knox, Konkel, Olson, Rosas, VanRooy, Verveer
No: Brandon, Cnare, Compton, Golden, Palm, Radomski, Sanborn, Skidmore, Thomas

Amendment #38 - $23,000 for the Neighborhood House for a half-time program assistant. This was a long and tortured discussion that had more to do with how we decide what to fund than the needs of the over-worked staff at the Neighborhood House. Most bizarre comment of the evening to me was when Ald. Cindy Thomas, after getting $30,000 for her neighborhood center in her district, launched into a tirade about how we can't fund things outside of the CDBG and Office of Community Services process. Motion passed on a voice vote.

Amendment #40 - $10,000 for adult and children's programming at the Library.
Yes: Webber, Benford, Bruer, Golden, Gruber, King, Knox, Konkel, Olson, Rosas, Verveer
No: Brandon, Cnare, Compton, Palm, Radomski, Sanborn, Skidmore, Thomas, VanRooy

Amendment #41 - This one was introduced from the floor by Ald. Cnare and Olson. Passed on a voice vote.

Allocate $43,000 from the former Women's Transit Authority ride service 2006 unused money to support start-up costs for the transportation service provider that will be selected after a formal RFP process. The allocation must be matched by donations of cash or materials/supplies secured by the selected provider. In the event no provider is selected, the City's $43,000 will revert to the General Fund.

Amendment #42 - This one was introduced from the floor by Ald. King. The following motion passed on a voice vote. The following people added their names as a co-sponsors - Mayor Cieslewicz, Golden, Benford, Bruer, Golden, Knox, Konkel, Rosas, VanRooy, Verveer, Webber.

Final vote on the budget.
Yes: Webber, Benford, Bruer, Cnare, Golden, Gruber, King, Knox, Konkel, Olson, Palm, Radomski, Rosas, Sanborn, VanRooy, Verveer
No: Brandon, Compton, Skidmore, Thomas

And what did all of this get us . . .
We increased spending by $471,000.
We increased revenues by $350,000
So, we increased the amount we need to tax by $121,784
This is a total 5.1% total increase
The mill rate is at 7.2138
The taxes on the average home (about 239,500) is $1727 for the City's portion
The council actions increased the mayor's budget by .022% or increased the taxes on the average home by $1.03.

More to come, after I get some sleep . . . .

Read more!

Salvation Army has no shame.

Unbelievable.

I recently sponsored a $25,000 amendment to the City Budget to match the amendment Sup. Scott McDonell made to the county budget to give the Salvation Army $25,000. That's $50,000 to run their current $31,000 program and expand it. You'd think that would be worth a mention, wouldn't you?

This year, we've been told the shelter won't open until December 1. Can you imagine sleeping in your car with your kids with some of the weather we've already had this year? Or Thanksgiving evening? Funding this program would prevent families from having to do that. This is a good program, despite multiple issues with the Salvation Army in general and its unethical fundraising efforts. Read more!

Budget Amendments Come Out Today

So, today we find out what we are voting on this Tuesday. I hear there will be plenty for folks to be upset about. Here's what I know so far . . .

I've sponsored the following:

• Add $75,000 for improvements to the Railroad Crossing at Johnson and Fordem. (Konkel, Olson)
• Add $25,000 for the warming shelter at Salvation Army that allows people who would be turned away to sleep on a mattress on the floor instead. (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $50,000 additional money for neighborhood grants (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Remove the conditions placed on the Affordable Housing Trust Fund at the Board of Estimates (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $10,000 for the sign language interpreters that we are required to provide. (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $5,000 to the Office of the Director of Planning and Development for an AASPIRE intern (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $19,371 for AASPIRE interns in other departments (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Require the 10 new cops to be neighborhood police officers in 2008 (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $63,000 to have 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked for our employees working more than 18 hours of week (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $10,000 in funding for libraries for adult and children's programs (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $5,000 for the Jobs with a Future program (Konkel, Benford, King)
• Add $41,280 for a Neighborhood Ombudsman (Konkel, Benford, King)
• And I submitted a placeholder amendment on the Planning and Development Reorganization that would refer all of the rearranging of departments to the Common Council Organizaitonal Committee to make recommendations regarding the reorganization. This amendment provides for some savings through truth in budgeting as well. (Konkel, Golden)
  

I also signed on to a few amendments that other folks had

• Add $10,000 for Sister Cities and remove $10,000 from the Greater Madison Convention and Vistors Bureau Funding (King)
• Add about $40,000 for Westside Neighborhood Center functions (Thomas, Sanborn)
• Remove the $18,000 for the Collaboration Council (Golden)
  

I heard from Ald. Zach Brandon about a few amendments that will likely be of interest to some folks including removing the funding for improvements to James Madison Park and removing money for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

We'll get the rest of them around noon and I'll share them as soon as I can but I have several meetings this afternoon. If they come out soon enough, I'll post others and my reactions prior to those meetings.

Sounds like this year isn't going to be the smooth sailing many of us were hoping for.

Note: For more info, see the Wisconsin State Journal today (which I should have read before posting, but I don't really read that paper any more . . . . only when someone points articles out to me . . .) Read more!

How far can AM radio shock jocks go?

Yesterday, when I blogged about Casey Hoff's wacky interpretation of my recent blog about the Salvation Army, I was well aware that Sly had made some rather nasty personal comments about me on the air that same day. I was attempting to ignore it. In fact, I didn't even ask exactly what he said because he's just been very personal and nasty to me before. However, today, a friend of mine told me what he said.

Apparently, yesterday he was asking his callers how Brian Burke should be punished. Of course, the callers and Sly were getting a little raunchy. They apparently suggested anal sex between Burke and Chvala among other things. At some point, a caller suggested that punishment would be sending me over to have sex with Burke. Apparently, instead of letting it go, Sly asked the caller if he meant that I was going to smother Burke. Then he made a comment about how he gets aroused when he thinks of me, which of course is followed by laughter. (Last time I remember him doing something similar, he said something to the effect that when he thinks of me his turtle crawls back in its little shell.) And of course they don't use my name when they make these remarks, they refer to me a Pumpkinhead. Although Tim Morrissey has apparently been asked to stop calling me Pumpkinhead, Sly and his callers were using the name yesterday.

Much has been said about why only 10 of the 37 races for county board are contested this spring. I think this is one part of the problem, who wants to open themselves up to this kind of crap? And don't the radio stations have some sort of standards they have to adhere to? Read more!

Casey Hoff knows what motivates Brenda Konkel?

So, Casey Hoff seems to believe he has the secret key to determine what motivates me. How scary is that! I can't stand listening to these blowhard AM radio hosts. I keep telling myself, this is just their job and they're probably really nice people when they're off the air. Tho I find it concerning that they are such tools for the right and that people actually take the crap they spew as "news" and they have no concern about if what they say is factually accurate. They actually go as far as to make things up. His most recent rant about me just shows what a tool of the right he is and how they have no shame about their reckless disregard for the truth.

Let's dissect what Mr. Hoff has to say:

First of all, he calls my recent blog about the Salvation Army a "crusade". Note that I posted the blog on December 16th. That was the one and only thing I said about the Salvation Army until Bill Lueders from the Isthmus called me and followed up on what I wrote. I merely answered the reporter's questions and practically begged him to find some other sources for his story. End of any action I have taken on this matter. I would hardly call that a "crusade". And if he thinks that qualifies as being "fired up", he's never seen me "fired up"!

Next, he says that my actions are a "politically motivated, vindictive vendetta against Christianity." Dude, you lost me there. How in the world did he come up with that? What would I have to gain politically? How does he know what motivated me? How is it vindictive? What vendetta do I have against Christianity?

Then, it just gets surreal - as it often does with Mr. Hoff.

Ms. Konkel apparently believes that the City of Madison and Dane County shouldn't be affiliated or provide support to the evil Christian organization, of which it received over $600,000 and around $13,000 from the city for the operation of its homeless shelter program and "family stabilization services".

In my blog I specifically said that I didn't care that they are a church or that they have a mission statement as follows:

The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.

But I did care that their religious beliefs "intrude into their services". I really don't care if they are a religious organization. Many religious organizations do many fine things and have many wonderful people working and volunteering for them. What I care about is that their religious beliefs intrude into their services. Particularly, that the Salvation Army discriminates against gay and lesbian couples. In fact, they don't seem to deny it. They admit that they have a policy that has a disparate impact on homeless gays and lesbians. Then, they try to blame their discrimination on Dane County rules. Meanwhile, the county looked at their rules and said they are already changing the rules to get rid of any misperception the Salvation Army has that they cannot let these families stay together in shelter.

Casey also says that I think that city and county funds should be withdrawn from the Salvation Army. I never said. I just think they should change their rules, what is so terrible about that?

Next, he goes completely off the deep end when he says:

It's too bad that Brenda Konkel is more interested in trying to nitpick a wonderful organization than she is helping out the poor in this community.

First of all, discrimination against gays and lesbians is hardly nitpicking. It's illegal.

Second, does the dude have any idea what I've done for a living for the past 10.5 years? Or that before that when I was practicing law I took public defender cases, you know, the poor? Has he ever heard of the Affordable Housing Action Alliance that I helped found? the Social Justice Center that I literally helped build? Or has he noticed some of the policies that I have helped pass in this city? Some little issues he may have heard of that impact "the poor" include section 8, minimum income policies, affordable housing trust fund, TIF 10% set-aside, inclusionary zoning, minimum wage, paid sick leave, etc. Does he know how much money I give to various organizations that serve "the poor" every year? The fundraising I do for the Housing Crisis Fund to help prevent evictions of "the poor"? That when I was young I was "poor" enough to have to be embarrassed when I stood in the free lunch ticket line at school, or that there were times when I had no choice but to eat "government cheese" and drink powdered milk that my mom brought home?

Shouldn't there be some kind of standards or way to hold these shock jocks responsible for the ridiculous things that they say? Don't they have some sort of responsibility to at least say things that come close to the truth? And how the hell does Casey Hoff know what motivates me since we've never even met?

Read more!

Issues with Salvation Army

I got a phone call today from a woman, an alleged "Christian" woman. The first thing she said was that I should stop badmouthing the Salvation Army. I tried to ask her what she was talking about, but she wouldn't really answer. She proceeded to ask me why I hated Christians. Eventually, she resorted to name calling. She kept calling me "nothing". Complained that I worked in a non-profit. Suggested that I put up homeless people myself if I didn't like the way the Salvation Army did it. She continued talking over me, insulting me and calling me anti-Christian and telling me I was "nothing". I tried to explain I wasn't anti-Christian and that this wasn't a very "Christian" conversation, but she wouldn't listen. I finally had to tell her the conversation was over and hang up on her. It was one of the least "Christian" conversations I have had in a while . . . since some of the phone calls I got during the smoking ban.

What I would have said to this woman, if I could get a word in edgewise, would have been the following:

I don't care that the Salvation Army is a church, as it says on their website:

Founded in 1865 in London, England, The Salvation Army is a Christian Church dedicated to serving those persons with physical and spiritual needs in the name of Jesus Christ without discrimination.

or that their mission statement is as follows:

The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.

What bothers me, is that they are the "gatekeeper" for homeless services in Dane County, which means it is the only place homeless families can go. Unfortunately, their religious beliefs intrude into their services in the following ways:

1. They require their case managers to keep their bibles on their desks, and my tax dollars help pay for that case manager.
2. Instead of providing daycare, they send the kids to bible school, and I suspect my taxpayer dollars pay for that as well. (Note: This incident happened a few years ago, the county no longer funds it.)
3. They discriminate against gay and lesbian couples. If two women and their children come in to the shelter, they don't let them stay together. One of the mom's can stay with the children, they other one has to go to the single women's shelter. I don't understand why they would break up a family who is homeless when they should be kept together so they can support each other.

Even worse, they're not even good at providing the services they do provide. The have a "warming shelter" where they can take up to 14 people who would otherwise possibly freeze to death on the street. In public meetings, they claim that they don't turn anyone away. However, the other night, there were only two families in the shelter, meantime, several families got turned away. They don't even tell people about the "warming shelter" when they turn them away.

So, I don't care that the Salvation Army is a Christian Church, but I do care that their religion bleeds over into their services to the homeless, and that their services leave quite a bit to be desired. Lose the bibles, stop discriminating against gay and lesbian couples and let people into and tell them about the warming shelter instead of turning them away, then I'll think about discontinuing complaining about the Salvation Army.

By the way, if you're going to try to make anonymous phone calls, think a little bit. I was able to get the "Christian" women's phone number off my cell phone, googled the number and got her address. Looked up the address in the voter file and now I have her name. I'm tempted to send her a copy of this blog, but it would probably freak her out too much. Read more!