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ST. PETERSBURG — Mayor Bill Foster said he's eliminating a perk for top administrators that was criticized last year for being out of touch in an era of reduced services, stagnant wages and lost jobs.
For at least the past 23 years, St. Petersburg administrators have been awarded a monthly car allowance, regardless of whether they use their car at work. The stipend ranges mostly between $92 and $135 a month, which is more than what other similar-sized governments in the region pay.
After a Tampa Bay Times story about the perk — which costs taxpayers $201,852 annually — in July, Foster said he was reluctant to eliminate it.
The stipend was necessary, he said, to keep the best people from leaving for the private sector or other cities.
But the bonus was called wasteful by the head of the city's blue collar union, whose members have endured a shrinking workforce and flat wages. It also drew barbs from council members. Wengay Newton voted against Foster's $572 million budget because of the perk.
"We're reducing services and yet we still have people who make six figures who have perks like this," Newton said at the time.
In response, Foster reviewed the perk by asking recipients to log their mileage and miscellaneous car costs for three months: August, September and October. After reviewing the totals, Foster concluded he would scrap the automatic allowance.
"The stipend will be discontinued," Foster said. "There's a more equitable way to reimburse employees for the use of their vehicle."
Administrators will soon track their mileage and get reimbursed 44.5 cents a mile. Foster said he would also compensate for other costs, but wouldn't identify them.
Foster said he wouldn't characterize the move as a cost-cutting measure. He said some employees will end up getting paid more than the stipend they currently receive.
Yet in a Feb. 2 meeting, Foster suggested that money would be saved. "And for council member Newton, as far as the car allowance, I'm working on eliminating that program," Foster said. "The things you wanted cut, we're cutting."
Newton said he was surprised, but welcomed the change.
"He threw that out there, that was the first I heard of it," he said. "I guess all the attention worked. Don't get me wrong, if people drive on city business, they should get reimbursed. They should just do like everyone else and fill out mileage reports. It's great that the mayor's doing this."
The savings could be substantial, according to a review of three months of mileage reports filed by 76 employees who get the $135 stipend. Currently, the city spends $122,280 a year compensating these employees.
When those administrators tracked their mileage and other car expenses, their totals fell about 40 percent short of their stipends. At that pace, the city will save about $50,000 over a year. The city didn't make available mileage recorded by the 65 employees who receive the $92 monthly stipend so the savings could increase. While Foster said some employees will be reimbursed higher amounts than their stipend, that was true for only 14 percent of those who received $135 stipends from August through October.
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