Wenstrup on City Hiring and Budget Problems

Statement:

(CINCINNATI, OH) Days after Cincinnati Mayoral candidate Brad Wenstrup pointed out extraneous job descriptions for potential hires, the city announces massive potential layoffs, and then fills the position of "Climate Protection Coordinator".

"The city now has a 'Climate Protection Coordinator', which is a job advertised for just days ago," Wenstrup said. "But no one is coordinating the financial climate responsibly. It does not seem to be good management when you fill jobs, especially unnecessary jobs, when you're preparing to cut city jobs and services."

When Wenstrup brought the creation of the "Climate Protection Coordinator" to the public's attention earlier this month, the city answered that some jobs are paid for out of grant funds. It was not clear if the "Climate Protection Coordinator" is one of those jobs.

"The mentality of having to spend money, unnecessarily, because there is a fear of losing the funding, is the wasteful type of thinking that has gotten us into our current dire situation," Wenstrup said. "When the grant funding is finished, the city is left with another bill for an unnecessary job.

City Manager Milton Dohoney presented two "options" for budget cuts. The first option cut services and jobs that the Council has prioritized. The second "option" cut essential services. The first "option" seems to be the only realistic proposal. It is not clear if the position of "Climate Control Coordinator" is one of the jobs that may be cut (right after filling it).