-
Jan 24, 2008 7:43 pm US/Eastern
-
Digg |
Facebook |
E-mail
|
Print
Bloomberg's 2009 Budget Reflects Tough Times
Cuts, Few Flashy Projects Slated For Next Fiscal Year
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
New York City's projected Wall Street profits for 2007 plummeted by $14 billion. The city is expected to get $660 million less in taxes from banks hit by the subprime crisis.
So, is it any wonder that Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposed budget is pinching pennies any way it can?
You save half a million dollars by replacing the 100-watt bulb necklace lights on the East River bridges with 24-watt led lamps.
You can pocket $5 million by selling the methane gas produced by decomposing garbage at the Fresh Kills landfill.
And 50 new red-light cameras will put an additional $8 million into city coffers.
Despite the tough economic times Bloomberg is trying to find creative solutions so he doesn't have to raise taxes.
"This administration is trying to hold the line and reduce taxes," Bloomberg said Thursday.
And despite Wall Street woes and the possibility of a recession, Bloomberg's proposed new budget gives the owners of one-, two- and three-family homes a $400 rebate and gives other property owners a 7 percent tax cut -- at least for now.
"We're going to provide tax relief and help families weather the storm and pump money into the local economy," the mayor said.
The budget does have $1.5 billion in cuts:
*It takes 1,000 police slots off the books that the city hasn't been able to fill .
*It has $324 million in education cuts.
"We're going to give the schools discretion of which particular programs and things they want to cut," NYC Schools Chancellor Joel Klein said.
Some watchdogs think the mayor should cut more and spend less.
"I think it would be more Bloomberg (would) like to do more on the spending control, and not putting all this money into one year's services," said Charles Brecher of the Citizens Budget Commission.
The pitfall for the mayor is that this is January. The budget isn't adopted until June, and between now and then a lot of things can change at City Hall.
The mayor says that despite the tough economic times he's committed to forcing Washington and Albany to give New York City its fair share.
Bloomberg will travel to Albany on Monday to demand more from the governor.
WCBSTV.com's Most Popular Pages
Slideshow: Openly Gay Celebrities
Celebrity Real Names Revealed
Slideshow: The Coolest Fighter Jets…Ever!
Slideshow: Celebrity Sex Tapes Revealed
Slideshow: Jessica Simpson Then To Now
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)