Don’t Dismantle Porterville’s Public Services Without Proof

We, the undersigned residents, taxpayers, and business owners of Porterville, oppose the plan to privatize the City’s Planning, Engineering, and Community Development services and eliminate 19 city positions.

This proposal would put 19 Porterville families out of work while removing experienced professionals who help keep our city functioning. These employees are not just positions in a budget—they are neighbors, homeowners, and customers who support local businesses and contribute to our community every day.

City leaders have described this plan as part of an effort to “deconstruct the administrative state.” But residents deserve responsible governance, not experiments with essential public services.

The public has not been shown a transparent cost comparison demonstrating that privatizing these services will save money. Before dismantling entire departments, taxpayers deserve clear evidence that contracting out these responsibilities will not increase long-term costs through contractor profit margins, contract oversight, and change orders.

Across many cities, privatization has resulted in higher costs, less accountability, and slower service delivery. Once experienced staff are gone, cities often become dependent on outside contractors with fewer options and less control.

Eliminating these jobs will also harm Porterville’s local economy. Nineteen employees and their families represent lost spending at downtown restaurants, shops, and small businesses that depend on local customers.

This proposal also raises serious concerns about service quality. Planning, engineering, and community development are essential functions that support responsible growth, protect property values, and ensure development happens safely and efficiently. Privatization does not make the public safer, and it may slow the services residents and businesses rely on.

Before moving forward, we call on the City Council to:

• Provide a public and independent cost comparison between in-house services and privatization

• Disclose the full financial and operational impacts of this proposal

• Consider the economic consequences for local families and businesses

• Allow meaningful public discussion before eliminating these positions

Porterville deserves transparent decisions based on facts—not ideology.

Until the public is shown clear evidence that privatizing these services will save money and improve service, we ask the City Council to stop this proposal and protect the people and services that keep our city running.