PITTSBURGH –- The proposed plan by a Pennsylvania state-appointed fiscal recovery team to solve Pittsburgh’s budget problems includes the possible privatization of the city’s vehicle fleet management, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette newspaper. The fiscal recovery Act 47 team will allow private contractors to bid against city workers for the work. Fred Bell, a city garage machinist and president of Lodge 52 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, said the union is already working on its bid and will try to reduce vehicle costs by cutting take-home cars for non-emergency personnel. Overall, the plan’s five-year blueprint proposes up to $56 million each year in revenues from new taxes and fees, and $33 million in spending cuts starting next year, rising to $65 million in cuts by 2009. According to the Post-Gazette, 30 government officials spent five months writing the city’s recovery plan. The City Council will take a final vote June 29.
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