FOIL Foiled: City Losing More Than Saving?

Is the City of Plattsburgh so focused on saving money that in the long run it ends up losing more?

That point is raised in a public response to WIRY radio commentator Ducky Drake by Working Families Party mayoral candidate Kathi McCleery. In her email reply McCleery mentions how the city has been trying to save money by challenging certain terms in contracts with union employees. She writes:

"I know that if a written contract exists, it must be followed. My point? The issues of contract law, Taylor Law and civil service law are apparently not understood by the current administration, which may or may not have large payroll experience. How can I make this statement? The city has lost every PERB [NYS Public Employee Relations Board] hearing (not some, not many, but ALL) for the past four years."

McCleery estimates that a quarter of a million dollars has been spent in losing legal battles with city employees. She did submit a FOIL (Freedom of Information Law) request to get more than an estimate but her request was denied. The reason: there was too much information for the city to provide. It appears, adds McCleery, the city has generated so many legal fees in the last four years that such data is unavailable.

Besides the legal fees, she points out there are other expenses such as travel costs, lost wages, court costs and arbitrators’ fees.

With McCleery's FOIL denied, Plattsburgh citizens may never find out how much of their money has been spent in failed legal maneuvers against city unions.