More FOP Board Meeting News

Remember, this is YOUR Dues money - you contribute to the running of the Lodge to protect YOUR Rights, negotiate YOUR Contract, provide YOU legal assistance when needed.

It's not a vacation fund for the Executive Board:

• There wasn’t a single meaningful discussion about grievances, discipline, working conditions, benefits, manpower, or the problems facing the men and women actually working the streets. Instead, so much of the meeting was about approving money for trips, events and other non-essential expenses.

  One that really stood out was the Board approving $10,000 for John Catanzara, Mike Cosentino, Dave DiSanti, Steve Olsen and Rob Noceda to take the food trailer to New York for the 9/11 Memorial.

  Don’t get me wrong. I think every American should visit the 9/11 Memorial at some point in their life. I just don’t expect to pay for their trip.

  How does spending $10,000 of  dues to send these guys to New York serve the membership? How does using our dues to buy food to hand out to people who aren’t even Lodge 7 members do anything for the men and women who paid for it and are left behind working the streets?

  Were dues-paying members offered the opportunity to go? Was the trip opened up to the membership? No. Instead, the trip goes to Board Members who don't pay dues and are already receiving Commander or Captain salaries or generous Lodge stipends.

What business does the Lodge have in New York? NYPD runs with the PBA, not the FOP. 

Why does the food trailer have to go along - is The Big Apple is running low on hotdogs? Who's paying for the food and do the members get to inspect the receipts and books? Why five people? And why these five? 

This doesn't sound like an appropriate use of Dues money because no one can define how this is being used to benefit the membership. 

By the way, wasn't the FOP Golf Outing a good time yesterday? A bit warm, but a sunny day. We shook hands with a number of members of the Executive Board, including the big man himself....twice....to our internal amusement.