Jax activist John Winkler: ‘Just vote no’ on pension tax

A familiar figure in Jacksonville’s City Hall is John Winkler.

The Riverside lawyer, former Democratic candidate for clerk of courts, and president of the Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County has a new cause: defeating the Aug. 30 pension tax referendum.

And there’s a website to match: Just-Vote-No.com.

Winkler won’t be winning any “Webmaster of the Year” awards for the site. It’s barebones; just an aggregation of posts, with graphics reminiscent of the turn of the century.

But on that site, Winkler attempts, as he has done on issue after issue, to demystify the rhetoric of the city’s political establishment.

One notable point, which he echoed in a phone conversation with FloridaPolitics.com, are claims the new plan must give police and fire employees defined benefit plan — aka pension — benefits. That assertion does not jibe with the original sales pitch of the plan, which was a defined contribution model (along the lines of 401(k) or IRAs), which other city employees may get stuck with.

Another notable point: “Until about 40 years ago, city retiree pensions were paid as a part of each year’s budget (“pay-go”). We are not aware of any legal prohibition against returning to such a system. A pay-go system is an alternative concept that was offered to the Administration more than three months ago. To date there has been no response from the Mayor’s office to this idea.” 

In a phone conversation Thursday, Winkler described his opposition to “the mayor going around saying ‘vote for this or someone will come behind me and [push through] a massive property tax increase.’

“We may very well get a massive increase in property taxes anyway,” Winkler notes, especially if the Police and Fire Pension Fund “reduces its theoretical rate of return.”

Winkler also contends the pro-referendum argument thus far has been inchoate.

“There’s a lack of ability of the present administration to articulate why this is the sole solution,” Winkler said.

“For the next 14 years,” Winkler adds, “what relief does this offer? If you came to me in 2030 with this referendum,” Winkler added, it might be “fine.”

Winkler also believes that there is a reason “this had to be on the primary ballot.”

That reason?

“The passage of time doesn’t help [the Lenny Curry administration]. The mayor says ‘just trust me’; I say ‘just vote no,” Winkler quipped.

Winkler is aware his will be a shoestring campaign. If he can raise $10,000 for the “Just Vote No” political committee, he figures he might be able to counter the seven-figure budget anticipated for “Yes for Jacksonville,” by taking advantage of old-school technologies such as palm cards and yard signs, which could be key in this effort.

To raise money, Winkler expects to take the “Bernie Sanders” approach, and “ask for three bucks.”

Winkler’s sense of urgency is driven, in part, by a meeting with Jacksonville CFO Mike Weinstein a couple of months back that left him with more questions than answers.

The administration, he says, is backing away from earlier contentions that this referendum would offer “present budget relief.”

Winkler also takes issue with Curry’s use of what he called the “bully pulpit.”

“The mayor has essentially told people around the city,” Winkler said, that they’d get “no support unless the thing gets passed.”

The question from here: how much traction does Winkler’s counter-narrative get, given buy in from the full city council and many community leaders?