London City Council overrides mayor’s veto on budget ordinances

LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. (ABC36 NEWS NOW) — The London City Council has voted to override Mayor Randall Weddle’s veto of a new pay plan and several ordinances aimed at balancing the city’s budget.

The ordinances were originally passed earlier this month. The decision to override the veto was made during a specially called city council meeting Tuesday night.

Mayor Weddle has warned the ordinances could have serious consequences for city services and employees. In a post on his Facebook page, Weddle said the approved budget would result in pay cuts, firings and layoffs across multiple departments.

“Numbers do not lie, and the numbers are true,” Weddle wrote. “When this ordinance is published we’re going to have to layoff the entire fire department, street department, and your building inspector. Those departments are automatically gone. There’s not enough funding to sustain and keep them.”

According to the mayor, at least 86 city employees have filed a lawsuit against the London City Council in response to the ordinances.

The mayor’s full remarks and video from Tuesday night’s meeting are available on the mayor’s and the city council’s Facebook pages.