L.A. Budget Mixed Bag for Businesses By JEFF WEISS Contributing Reporter Using a new priority-based budgeting system that heavily took into account the opinions of neighborhood councils, Mayor James Hahn and the Los Angeles City Council passed a budget that aimed to adversely impact local businesses as little as possible, city hall officials claim. The efforts of Councilwoman Wendy Greuel were instrumental in preserving funds allocated for business tax reform, a fact that will undoubtedly please the tax-weary business community in the Valley and throughout Los Angeles. However, the budget itself may result in businesses in Sunland, Tujunga, and Pacoima feeling the brunt of a $600,000 reduction for funding for nuisance alley closures that has negatively impacted the business climate of those areas. “We used a brand new priority-based budgeting process where we went to the neighborhood councils and had a budget day. We asked them what their top priorities were, what they expected the city to provide, and public safety was first in everyone’s categories except for the South Valley (whose number one priority was street, public safety was second),” Deputy Mayor Doane Liu said. “We ranked all of the services, put a price tag on them, and prioritized them. When we hit the $5.6 billion ceiling, we stopped. We established a budget with only minor changes, one of the smoothest budgets in history.” The budget succeeded in adding 30 new police officers to the beat, with six new command positions headed to the new North Valley Police Station in Pacoima, which is slated to open at the beginning of next year. Befitting the neighborhood councils’ concerns, DARE programs across Los Angeles have been suspended indefinitely, freeing up 70 officers to police the streets. While this year’s budget process was characterized by significantly less acrimony than in the past, City Council members found themselves chafing under tight budgetary constraints. Along with the $600,000 decrease in funding for nuisance alley closures, the Department of Aging budget will be reduced by $183,000 and six positions, the Commission on the Status of Women will see one position cut, and the Departments of Disability and Human Relations also face reduced funding. Furthermore, bulky drop off item centers intended to reduce illegal dumping and the bookmobile service will be shuttered. Alternatives sought “In my district there had been some communities where we were talking about nuisance alley closures. One was in Pacoima and there were a few other spots in my district, and now it won’t be a solution. However, there are other ways to look at it, such as adding street lights and power poles,” said 6th District Councilman Tony Cardenas. “We are just going to have to connect the dots in different ways and know that we can’t connect things as efficiently and globally as we have in the past.” Javier Herrera, president of the Pacoima Chamber of Commerce expressed disappointment about the decrease in funding but remained optimistic that solutions would be found. “We are trying to get more street lights in Pacoima and make the streets look better so we can get more people to stop and see the businesses,” Herrera said. “Obviously, the council has a budget and I think that things can be done with the budget so it can look more attractive to the community with the limited means that they have. We obviously would like more lights and the alley to be closed but we feel that they can do it with what they have.” Greuel, who represents the 2nd Council District which consists of parts of Sherman Oaks, North Hollywood, Sunland, and Tujunga, felt that the budget process went relatively smoothly considering the scarcity of funds available. Basic city services “It was a difficult year for the city because of the cuts in state funding and there was the fact that we had somewhat of a structural deficit. What was really important to me was the business tax reform fund. It was very hard to ensure that we had the reform fund slated into the budget,” Greuel said. “The other point to make is that we really focused on the delivery of basic city services. That’s the meat and potatoes and that’s what the neighborhood councils say is a big priority. We increased funding for things like street resurfacing in the city.” While talk had surfaced of building a bulky drop-off center in Sun Valley, one will not be built. While bulky items lingering on sidewalks can only hurt the business climate of a city, Greuel and the other council members believed that the effects of the bulky drop-off centers were negligible. “We heard from the Department of Sanitation that these centers did not meet their expectations. We heard that L.A. citizens weren’t using them and that very industrious people from other cities were dumping stuff into them,” Greuel said. “The department thinks that if they better educate the public to make them call for pickup of bulky items, it will do just as good of a job to eliminate the problem. I’ve been working hard in my district to have a bulky item drop off day every now and then, versus every day and every week. Everyone thought the centers didn’t meet expectations.” Budget Highlights – Los Angeles -30 additional police officers hired -Suspension of the DARE program and shifting of those officers to the streets -$600,000 cut in funding for nuisance alley closures -Elimination of bulky item drop off centers -Elimination of Book Mobile service -Departments of Aging, Disability, and Human Relations will see reduced funding -Commission on Status of Women has one position cut California -$2 billion in higher than expected tax receipts allow steep cuts to be spared for health services for the poor, transportation, and other social services -Cal State and UC systems will see reduced funding this year, in exchange for a guarantee of increased money starting in 2005-2006. -Cal State Northridge forced to reduce total of full-time students from 24,390 to 23,172. -Cal State Northridge tuition next fall will rise 14 percent for undergraduates, 20 percent for students in the teacher training program, and 25 percent for graduate students -Tuition at California community colleges will go from $18 to $26 per unit
