#Fairfield CT– First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick– said the over the past year she has heard repeatedly from our residents that our town operations need to be modernized and improved, which has become a central focus of my vision for Fairfield. I spoke about modernizing and improving our town government and services during my inauguration speech and in my January State of the Town address. After having spent nearly a year managing our town government, I had the opportunity to see firsthand the reason our residents email and call asking for changes.
Many of the initiatives I wanted to deliver for our residents had to be put on hold because of the pandemic. However my vision for the town remains the same, to provide our residents and businesses with an efficient and responsive government that meets their needs.
My administration has developed a voluntary early retirement incentive program (VERIP) for Town employees, which is a critical piece to reorganizing our town government.
VERIP will enable us to:
- Reorganize departments to create efficiencies and eliminate waste
- Modernize town government
- Improve services to residents
- Make government smaller, more efficient and smarter through technological advancements and managerial improvements
- Change the culture within government to improve our resident’s customer service experience
This type of program is commonly utilized in towns and cities with union contracts as a way to open up positions, and allow for reorganization. After researching and considering all options, VERIP is the only path that will allow me to efficiently achieve meaningful change to the way town services are delivered. Click to view my presentation on the plan.
According to the Town Charter, VERIP only requires approval from the Representative Town Meeting (RTM), our Town’s legislative body. The RTM will further review and vote on my proposal next week. If you don’t know who your local RTM member is, you can find out here.
Our Town cannot move into the future if we continue to do things the way we always have. In the many years I have been involved in our Town’s local government, little has changed. I understand why – change can be uncomfortable and extremely difficult. While there are costs associated with reorganization, I have pledged to our local elected officials and I pledge to you, our residents, that I will budget accordingly. Some may disagree, but I am confident that the short and long-term benefits of reorganizing far outweigh the associated costs.
I will continue to communicate directly to you, our taxpayers and residents, every week, with the work I’m doing, the state of our town, and the initiatives I am working on your behalf. As always, I will continue to listen and learn and lead on issues that our community values.
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