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September 8, 2010
Who Approved the Providence Mayor's Unauthorized Raises?
From ABC6.
Providence's Internal Auditor is telling City Council Finance Chairman John Igliozzi that Mayor Cicilline has been overpaid for the last four years.The internal memo written by James Lombardi explains that the city's Home Rule charter caps the Mayor's salary at $125,000 annually but that since 2006, the Mayor has been taking home more than that. Cicilline currently makes $132,000 annually, in violation of the charter.
The amount of overpayment comes to about $20,000 since it started.
Sure, he was 100% complicit in, not to mention the 100% beneficiary of, raises not contemplated by the City Charter. But unless Providence's disbursement procedures are terribly, possibly criminally, disfunctional, Mayor David Cicilline does not actually give the order as to payee or amount when checks are issued. (Please note that only through grinding teeth do I point out that Mayor Cicilline is not solely responsible for this situation.)
The question is, who does? Who signed off on these ... "erroneous" check amounts? 'Cause s/he is the one who should have said "Nuts" when the request came, directly or indirectly, from the mayor for these unauthorized raises.
Additionally, where has the recipient of this memo, which has been conveniently released one week before the primary, been for the last four years? In his capacity as Finance Chair, how did John Igliozzi miss these unauthorized increases? Who else missed it who should have seen it? And what other ... "erroneous" check amounts have all of these people missed?
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***vid didn't know nothing about it, or the 75K check or his brother's shakedowns or his cops raping, torturing and dope peddling, the removal of the homestead exemption, his sisters no show job with JCLS, his trick...er boyfriends no show job with JCLS or anything else...
Posted by: Tommy Cranston at September 8, 2010 6:50 PMare you kidding me?
Kernan F. King, the Republican candidate for state general treasurer who has, SINCE 2005, received a property-tax break available ONLY to permanent residents of Florida,
NOT NEWS ???
Just saying
Posted by: Sam at September 9, 2010 12:27 AM<>
Igree Sam, it diserves, at least equal treatment.
My rule of thumb for voting this year. Vote for no incumbents and no one in any way associated with the Carcieri administration. If an incumbent is running unopposed or against another sleezebag, write your own name in.
Posted by: George at September 9, 2010 9:29 PMThere are so many other scandals like this that haven't been reported much, if at all. For example, for several years, the Cicilline administration department heads were refusing to cooperate with a request from the city council that they allow an audit of the healthcare benefits being received by all city employees. Why no cooperation? Because those directors and their friends had allowed many to receive medical benefits illegally at the city's expense. Also, remember John Simmons, former administration head and effective chief financial officer? He registered his car in Massachusetts, apparently illegally, to avoid the excessive Providence car excise taxes, and tried to claim excessive unpaid compensation from Providence when he left to work for RIPEC (where the press now properly ignores him). Police Chief Esserman apparently earns more annually than the head of the U.S. Dep't of Defense, which is grossly obscene and indefensible. There are endless similar stories. To the Cicilline crowd, the taxpayers are there to be stolen from. and sadly, it seems like this will all continue if Cicilline's appointed successor, Angel Tavares, is elected mayor -- since all of the Cicilline appointees are desperately supporting Tavares.
Posted by: Bill at September 9, 2010 10:21 PM