Once again Tarek Ralsan has let his political ambition get in the way of the facts.
In his recent column, the candidate takes issue with legal fees billed by the firm of Berchem Moses under Mayor Cassetti, yet both his argument and numbers are entirely out of whack.
The result is yet another political ploy from a candidate willing to “say anything” to gain his first seat in government.
First, the fact is that nobody chose anything over the Ansonia Library. As Mr. Raslan is well aware, the library remains open without any reduction in hours.
What the candidate fails to mention is that an early retirement program designed by Corporation Counsel was instrumental in producing salary savings to avoid any cut to the library’s operational budget.
Next, Mr. Raslan also neglects to mention that the budget for legal fees was slashed in the 2017 budget by 28%. Again, the library’s operating budget was not reduced.
As for the legal fees themselves, below is a comparison of the actual legal fees paid to Berchem Moses since 2014.
These numbers were provided to Mr. Raslan via a FOI request. Yet in his column Mr. Raslan is off by about $310,000.
2014 Fees
Raslan: $338,807
Actual: $221,997
2015 Fees
Raslan: $368,812
Actual: $220,883
2016 Fees
Raslan: $226,049
Actual: $178,497
It should be noted that the fees are billed by multiple attorneys: specialists in fields such as labor and worker’s compensation, along with general counsel work performed by Corporation Counsel Marini.
Mr. Raslan fails to point out that the firm of Berchem Moses has extended a total of $296,634.50 in courtesy adjustments over the past year, meaning that Ansonia has paid for far less in fees than it is billed. That’s about a full year in free legal services.
Also, it should be made clear that Corporation Counsel Marini receives a part-time salary of only $28,000 from the city, without benefits. All legal fees go directly to the firm of Berchem Moses, not to Corporation Counsel in any form.
Attorney Marini has also written-off over $228,459 in fees over the past four years, constituting the bulk of the courtesy adjustments. Again, about a year in legal services for free.
And while Mr. Raslan lobs harsh criticisms of certain city spending, residents should note that he is not committed to preventing a tax increase. As he has now said multiple times, a tax increase is something he would actually support.
Mayor Cassetti and his team have produced real results for Ansonia while holding the line on taxes. This would not be possible without the work of the Mayor’s qualified legal team, which includes the creation and implementation of tax incentive programs, the negotiations of cost-saving HSAs into union contracts, and work on many of the development projects that have helped move Ansonia forward, such as the relocation of Farrel-Pomini to Fountain Lake.
Residents would do well to stick with experience and results this November.
The author is seeking re-election representing the Seventh Ward on the Ansonia Board of Aldermen.
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