We got our first look at the proposed cuts to next year’s city budget, and it’s not pretty: Close the Dallas Zoo one day a week and raise ticket prices, close the Dallas Aquarium, reduce maintenance at city facilities by 52 percent, and cut late-night 311 service. Also, boost sanitation and water-wastewater fees, which is the same thing as a tax hike, and reduce pay raises for city employees from four to three percent. For the time being, the 200 extra cops are in the budget.
It’s not as bad as the first estimate, which included library closings and reduced street maintenance, but it’s bad enough. These cuts also do just half the job, paring a $50 million deficit to $25 million — so there is still a ways to go.
Mayor Park Cities, conveniently out of town, issued a statement: "The mayor is committed to doing all he can to make sure that we do not have a property tax increase at the end of this budget process. This is just the beginning of summer and the process is far from over."
Much of the rest of the council, faced with re-election next spring, is also scrambling for cover. Oak Cliff’s Dave Neumann made sure to take in all sides of the issue, saying that he won’t tolerate library, recreation center, code enforcement or police cuts, but. … "We have not done a thorough enough job in scrubbing the budget for expenses. The easy route is just to raise taxes –- and raise the burden on property owners, raise the burden on families."
And there are still a couple of questions that need to be answered.
First, what provision does the proposed budget make for increased energy prices? Does the budget use $4 gas as the price for the next 12 months, or does it take into account likely increases? Is it enough of an increase? For example, the 2007-08 budget expected to save $399,318 from the fire department budget from lower fuel costs. I don’t think that’s going to happen this time.
Second, how much of an increase in sales tax revenue does the budget take into account? As noted, the city staff seriously overestimated the city’s sales tax take in the last budget. Hopefully, they’re not doing the same thing this time around and we won’t have to go through this same routine next summer.
And, as also noted, the city’s debt load from the 2006 $1.35 billion bond program accounted for more than eight percent of last year’s budget and will take up a sizeable chunk of this one. And it can’t be trimmed.
What’s going to happen? We’re going to see reductions in services, as the council jockeys with city manager Mary Suhm over what stays and what goes. You’ll notice how she’s nudging the council toward a budget that includes some cuts in key programs and some sort of tax increase every time she makes a service and budget projection. And the best guess about what happens?
• A small property tax increase, in which the council wipes its collective brow, sighs, and says things could have been much worse.
• More cops, but not 200 more. This will give Leppert a chance to look very fiscal and say something like "We have to live within our means. No one is happy about this, but the alternative would be a bigger tax increase or more drastic cuts."
• Reductions in some neighborhood services, like code enforcement, with a promise that the cuts are temporary and will be restored as soon as possible. I’m guessing that we won’t hire all of the the proposed 30 code enforcement officers and 20 employees for the new animal shelter.
Again, I have to ask: The city staff knew that their revenue projections were off last fall. Why are we scrambling now? And what is the council going to do to make sure this doesn’t happen again?
