Entering last night’s Cranston City Finance Committee meeting, both Mayor Allan Fung and the members of the city’s police officer’s union had hopes that a set of proposed changes to the recently-tabled tentative agreement would produce a contract acceptable to the Finance Committee. However, for reasons that are not fully understood, the Committee has declined to take any action on the proposed changes.
When Police Union President Steven Antonucci rose to speak during the public comment portion of the meeting, he was informed by Finance Chair Emilio Navarro that changes to the contract were not part of the evening’s discussion.
After several other public comments, the Finance Committee voted unanimously to send the contract without changes to the full Council, along with a recommendation not to pass it. Apparently, amendments will not be considered at the full City Council meeting (next Monday). The decision to proceed in this manner seems to have been made in an executive session whose minutes have been sealed.
Both Mayor Fung (audio) and Mr. Antonucci (audio) were surprised by this outcome and unsure as to why amendments to the existing agreement couldn’t at least be deliberated in public at this time.
If there’s not some kind of political game going on, then the Democrats on the Cranston City Council are taking the Rhode Island governing attitude of “there’s nothing we can do; the rules require us to act in strange and counterproductive ways” to bold new heights.
Finally, there was one unsolicited comment offered by a member of the public (audio) that seemed to pretty well sum up the feeling in the room after the meeting was (rapidly) adjourned.