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The prior Mayor Bates and City Council repeatedly refused to increase reserves, despite my many proposals. Shortly after their election, the new Mayor Arreguin and new City Council INCREASED RESERVES from 8% to 13% and already made policies to keep the money in separate funds to reduce the chance of spending it down. 

As the person who has led the charge and introduced the most council proposals to create a rainy day fund and increase the Reserve Fund, I can definitively state that I have no “ plan to use the City's reserves to give unions a raise.” And I have heard of no such plan or suggestion from anyone on the City Council.  

I strongly support appropriate levels of concern and monitoring of our fiscal condition, but please do not misunderstand the facts about what the new Mayor and Council are accomplishing and advocating. Mayor Arreguin and the City Council deserve great credit for transcending the political boundaries of progressive or moderate and increasing the reserves dramatically. It would have been much easier for them to spend the extra millions we had in the bank on their pet projects, as was the practice in the Bates years.  

Strong advocacy with inaccurate parts can be counterproductive. Strong advocacy based on facts can be powerful. Please let’s all be urgently needed advocates for fiscal responsibility based on documented facts.