The City Counci last night passed a resolution that calls upon the Rhode Island General Assembly to oppose any legislation that would mandate binding arbitration for expired teacher contracts.
The measure passed 8-1 with Councilman Mario Aceto voting alone in the negative.
Councilman Don Botts said binding arbitration "takes accountability away from elected officals and puts it in the hands of one arbitrator or a party of three that decided budgetary issues for the city."
And arbitrators "do not have to answer to a voter," Botts said.
In the end, an arbitrator's decision can cause tax rates to go up and the city to work around the new contract terms, even if it affects city services and other budgetary issues.
Council President John E. Lanni Jr. said he co-sponsored the resolution, noting "more than half" the city's budget is consumed with teacher salaries and benefits and an arbitrator's decision "could be devastating to the city."
The resolution doesn't change any law, but merely asks state leaders to oppose any measure that would require binding arbitration.
According to the resolution, current state law doesn't "provide for mandatory continuation of an existing teacher collective bargaining agreement" and since schools and cities and towns "have seen an enormous reduction of state aid" and "Cranston taxpayers are already overburdened by high property taxes," binding arbitration could put the district and/or the city into debt.
Specifically, House Bill H5340 would change state law that would mandate an expired contract would continue under the same terms and conditions and "would compel mandatory binding arbitration," which would "serve as a disincentive for unions to bargain in good faith and benefits to continue unchanged indefinitely thus forcing school districts and towns to possibly" violate the law limiting annual tax increases to a maximum of a 4 percent increase on the prior year's levy.
"There are other bargaining units out there that do not have this," Botts said.
Councilman Michael Favicchio said he, too, supports the measure.
"This is definitely something we need to urge the legislature to do," Favicchio said.
