Latest news with #People'sBudgetCoalition
Axios
5 days ago
- Business
- Axios
Lurie rolls out sweeping cuts in proposed $15.9 billion budget
Mayor Daniel Lurie plans on making steep cuts in order to close a massive deficit after unveiling the city's budget proposal on Friday. Why it matters: San Francisco has faced severe fiscal challenges since its pandemic-driven downturn. The big picture: Lurie's spending plan totals $15.9 billion in the 2025-2026 fiscal year and $16.3 billion in 2026-2027. State of play: His proposal prioritizes public safety at the expense of some city jobs and nonprofit funding, a move he said was needed to preserve core services that "drive the economy" and "provide clean and safe streets." Lurie's plan calls for downsizing the city's workforce by 1,400 jobs — of which 100 are currently filled — and cutting $100 million meant for nonprofits to stave off an $817.5 million two-year shortfall. What they're saying:"Here's the bottom line: we have to stop spending more than we can afford," the mayor said in a statement. "Unfortunately, in a crisis like this, there are no easy fixes. We are facing some incredibly difficult decisions." Between the lines: The proposal avoids any cuts to public safety personnel, such as police officers, firefighters and first responders. It also sets aside $400 million in reserves, including for potential litigation as the city navigates federal and state funding cuts. $75 million would go towards maintenance projects such as fire station repairs and pothole or curb ramp fixes, and $50 million would be invested in 22 technology projects, including a citywide data management system. Other priorities include maintaining street cleaning funding and a $90 million commitment over three years for homelessness services and interim housing. Lurie has also made an ongoing effort to tap into the private sector to help pay for some mental health and homelessness services, amid other initiatives, to reduce the burden on the budget. The other side: Labor groups and nonprofits lambasted Lurie for initiating layoffs and gutting community-based services for homelessness, food access and legal support, which could now face "total elimination," said Anya Worley-Ziegmann, a coordinator at the People's Budget Coalition, which is made up of 150 local nonprofits and public sector unions. "Difficult choices have to be made in unprecedented times, but the mayor is taking familiar routes: balancing the budget on the backs of working-class San Franciscans while protecting the wealthy and powerful," she told Axios in a statement. "It is unconscionable to ask frontline workers ... to pay for a budget shortfall they did not create," added Kim Tavaglione, executive director of the San Francisco Labor Council. The intrigue:
CBS News
01-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Audit finds San Francisco Police are out of compliance on overtime spending
Audit finds San Francisco Police overtime spending is out of compliance with department policies Audit finds San Francisco Police overtime spending is out of compliance with department policies Audit finds San Francisco Police overtime spending is out of compliance with department policies As San Francisco continues to face a massive budget deficit, an audit of police spending found that the San Francisco Police Department is out of compliance with their own polices related to overtime spending. The audit found 15 officers worked nearly or more than double a full-time workload. "They work in dangerous situations, so we do have to be responsive that it's not responsible to put them in these situations." said Anya Worley-Ziegmann with the People's Budget Coalition. "It's not a responsible way to manage a city." Worley-Ziegmann also lives near downtown, she's not just concerned about overspending by the police department, but also about its ability to keep people safe. "How can we ask our officers to perform their best work and to be accountable to the highest standards of ethics and of integrity if they're working 80-hour weeks," Worley-Ziegmann questioned. "This is completely remarkable and absolutely unacceptable." Tracy Gallardo has additional concerns, she is a legislative aid for supervisor Shamann Walton's office and she's a life-long resident of the Mission District. She's worried officers are working the system to make more overtime. The audit found officers who were calling out sick, went to work private security jobs within the same 24 hour period. The department is the required to backfill overtime for those officers. "The question really is, are they getting overtime, then the next day getting sick time, then someone else is getting paid to work the hours overtime, that is inflating our budget," said Gallardo. She also feels that officers are being concentrated in specific areas. "I live in a neighborhood where I rarely see police," said Gallardo. "I live in the Mission, I rarely see them. But when I go downtown shopping? Oh my gosh, I'm escorted by police." Special assignments, like the Union Square Safe Shoppers initiative are almost completely staffed by overtime. It is part of the 10-B program, which allows individuals, corporations or organizations to request additional police services. Assistant Chief David Lazar emphasized in the hearing that the officers are not being pulled out of neighborhoods for 10-B assignments. He says they are doing the best they can while being short hundreds of police officers. "Crime is down and people are feeling pretty good about the city right now and that's a direct result of the work we're doing," said Lazar. Lazar also said they have agreed to and already made progress on 26 of the 29 recommendations from the audit. He says only a few officers work the majority of the overtime because those are the officers that want it, and they don't want to force officers to work overtime. But Worley-Ziegmann says she questions if the millions of dollars of overtime funding could be better used elsewhere. "We want to put on the record that people are questioning this," said Worley-Ziegmann. "This is not being rubber stamped by the people even if it is rubberstamped by the board."
