|
NCs Get Reprieve: Immediate Funding Cuts Pulled from CAO Report |
|
|
CITYWATCH
By Ken Draper
Nine and a half hours into a marathon session the City’s financial chief told the Budget and Finance panel that he was pulling “Recommendation ‘J’” … and Neighborhood Councils were finally allowed to exhale. At least temporarily.
Recommendation “J” … in the Mid Year Financial Status Report … proposed
elimination of the NC rollover policy and the suspension or elimination
of NC funding.
Recommendation “J”—“The 2009-10 Budget provides $45,000 to each
certified Neighborhood Council (NC) for operating expenses and
neighborhood improvement projects. Six positions administer the program
at a total salary cost of $431,000. The City’s rollover policy allows
NCs to accumulate up to $145,000 of prior year unspent allocation.
Total NC funding for 89 NCs in 2009-10 is $5.61 million, $1.61 million for the rollover amount and $4 million in new allocation. Based on December 2009 expenditure data, elimination or suspension of the program may result in projected savings of $4.04 million this fiscal year.
However, current year savings may not be predictable, as funds have already been allocated and the rate of expenditure vary among NCs. 
This Office recommends elimination of the rollover policy, and suspension and/or elimination of the NC Funding Program.” (Complete report)
Hours earlier, 70-plus Neighborhood Council leaders had sardined themselves into a fire-code-jammed Council Chamber to fight the proposed cuts. Their principal argument was: NCs are mandated by the City Charter and they have a right to sufficient funds to operate and to serve their stakeholders. (Video link )
Any victory on this day is of course momentary, however. Think of more as a reprieve. The Committee left intact the CAO’s recommendation that rollover funds would be swept and returned to the City’s reserve fund and that NC funding would be cut by 50% in the 2010-2011City Budget. A battle for another day.
NC leaders made their case to media at busy press conference [LINK] in the City Hall rotunda minuets before the 1p.m. mid-year review of the City’s financial status launched.
As of 11p.m. Monday, the B & F Committee had yet to review the CAO’s recommendation that the Board of Neighborhood Empowerment’s staff be cut by 50% and perhaps merged with another department.
Budget Committee Chief Bernard Parks got everyone’s attention by telling the CAO that he wanted recommendations that included the options of making cuts to the LAPD and LAFD.
(Ken Draper is the editor of CityWatch. He can be reached at
This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
) -cw
CityWatch
Vol 8 Issue 9
Pub: Feb 2, 2010
|
