On February 13th, Mayor Bloomberg unveiled a $41.4 billion budget that cuts deeply into virtually every city agency to fill an unprecedented shortfall of nearly $4.8 billion. Virtually no city government service was spared, as agencies were cut anywhere from 1 percent to 26 percent, including the NYC Department for the Aging. The Department for the Aging eliminated weekend meal deliveries, eliminated a prescription drug reimbursement program, delayed the opening of four senior centers, and closed seven other lightly used centers to meet its $26 million reduction target. Here is a snapshot of how DFTA fared, as compared to several other of the Mayor’s proposals:
Details
of Some New Fees, Increases and Cuts
SOURCE: THE NEW YORK TIMES
|
PROPOSED
NEW FEES AND INCREASES: |
IN MILLIONS |
|
City cigarette tax increase from $.08 to $1.50 per pack |
$250.0 |
|
Higher parking ticket fines |
$62.0 |
|
Towing fee increase, from $150 to $175 |
$3.6 |
|
Cellphone tax, 30 cents per month |
$8.7 |
|
Telephone tax, increase of 65 cents per month |
$35.0 |
|
Asbestos and lead fines |
$0.2 |
|
Collection of diplomats’ overdue parking fines (in 2002) |
$3.7 |
|
Corporate sponsorship of parks |
$2.0 |
|
Landmark permit fee |
$0.5 |
|
Recycling (paper) fine increase, from $25 to $50 |
$1.7 |
|
Higher parking fees for city garages |
$1.4 |
|
Conversion of 3,500 parking meters to seven days on East Side |
$0.7 |
|
Fines for selling cigarettes to minors |
$0.2 |
|
PROPOSED
CUTS |
|
|
Fire Department, curt ambulance shift |
$10.0 |
|
Sanitation, suspend metal, glass, plastic recycling |
$56.6 |
|
Children’s services, curtail increases in day care slots |
$79.0 |
|
Homeless, curtail support services |
$6.0 |
|
Aging, eliminate prescription drug reimbursements (2002) |
$4.5 |
|
Aging, eliminate weekend meals for elderly |
$6.0 |
|
Aging, close seven senior centers & not open another four |
$2.3 |
|
Aging, eliminate money for social workers |
$2.5 |
|
Health Dept., reduce hours at animal shelters |
$1.6 |
|
Health Dept., end stop smoking programs |
$13.0 |
|
Housing, reduce anti-eviction legal services |
$2.0 |
|
Parks, reduce funding for park maintenance |
$3.6 |
|
Libraries, reduce funding by 15% |
$39.1 |
|
Cultural, reduce funding by 15% |
$19.1 |
|
CUNY, cut senior scholarship program |
$6.5 |
|
Queens Hospital Center, eliminate acupuncture program |
$0.3 |
The Mayor’s plan proposes to reduce the City’s budget
gap by:
· Saving $1.9 billion from changes at city agencies
· Receiving $0.8 billion from state and federal sources
· Saving $0.5 billion on labor and benefits (to be negotiated with unions)
· Saving $0.1 billion via early retirement, severance
· Assuming $1.5 billion long term debt
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