Benjamin Wachs: Verbal reprimands and a $30 million bow

Former Deputy County Executive James Smith avoided a criminal conviction by pleading incompetence. When he heard complaints from county employees about Robutrad workers moonlighting on county time, and when he caught them in a strip club doing just that, he probably should have written something down about it. Made a note somewhere, so it was official and stuff. Instead of issuing a stern “verbal reprimand” and then keeping it to himself.

Oops. His bad. But how often does something like that happen?

More than once. Last week in the trial of former Greece Police Chief Merritt Rahn, Town Supervisor John Auberger testified that after the chief’s gun was stolen out of an unlocked car, he probably should have written something down about it. Made a note somewhere. So if was official and stuff. Instead of issuing a stern “verbal reprimand” and keeping it to himself.

These two incidents have a lot in common. In both cases, politically connected Republicans with high ranking government jobs gave politically connected employees a slap on the wrist for serious career misconduct. The Robutrad workers were stealing from county taxpayers; Rahn left his gun in an unlocked car and it apparently ended up in a Rochester drug house. These are not trivial issues — except to their supervisors, who felt they were the kind of thing that shouldn’t hurt somebody’s career.

The fact that they happened at two very different levels of government, under two very different circumstances, only makes me worry more. Republican government officials giving other Republican officials a pass on serious misconduct seems to be the way business is done around here.
Makes you wonder what else was never written down.

• • •

It’s not nice to gloat, but as perhaps the only pundit who applauded Monroe County Executive Maggie Brooks for taking the “Medicaid Swap” option back in 2008, I feel justified in crowing about the news that it’s saving Monroe County almost $30 million so far.

Essentially the state offered counties two options: Either let the state keep a defined amount of county sales tax money (about 40 percent) annually, and counties pay nothing for Medicaid — or counties keep their sales tax money, but Medicaid costs rise 3 percent annually. Brooks took the first option.

Critics (mostly Democrats in the County Legislature) claimed the county was making a bad deal. It hasn’t turned out that way. Sales tax revenues have gone way down, meaning counties that chose to keep their sales taxes whole are paying for more Medicaid with less money. Monroe County, on the other hand, is paying for no Medicaid — a much better deal.

Those same critics say the tide will turn: the economy will recover, sales tax receipts will go up again. I hope so, but even then the “swap” will remain a good deal for Monroe County because it will protect us when we need it most: In a downturn.

While the county government per se won’t profit much from increased sales tax revenues in boom times (whenever they are ...) the county as a whole will. Schools, towns, villages and the city will all have more money to spend, as will local businesses. We won’t miss the county’s cut as much.
During a downturn, though, we need every penny we can save — and the sales tax intercept serves as a desperately needed cushion.

This wouldn’t be as good a deal, I’ll admit, if the county would sock all the money it saves in these theoretical boom times into its reserve funds, but would the county really do that? I know both parties want the county to have healthy reserve funds (as do I) but I see no evidence that either of them is able to deliver. Republicans are barely balancing the budget as it is, and Democrats have a raft of new spending proposals waiting in the wings.

Keeping our costs low is a better strategy for the world we live in, and I think Brooks can take a $30 million bow on this one.  

Benjamin Wachs writes for Messenger Post Media's print and online editions. Read his work at www.TheWachsGallery.com.