Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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San Francisco Examiner - May 31, 2005
Jo Stanley, jstanley@examiner.com
"I'm not sure that more is always better," he said at his budget presentation, noting that under his plan two-thirds of The City's newly found $41 million in revenue would go toward one-time uses such as capital and efficiency projects that don't create commitments for future funding in the same way that programs do.
Last year's unprecedented $307 million budget shortfall followed on the heels of several bad economic years, leading to a round of layoffs last summer and then even deeper service cuts in January after the mayor's sales- and business-tax packages failed at the ballot box. All recreation centers were shut down one day a week and more than 100 additional employees lost their jobs.
The coming year's shortfall was estimated at $102 million, but as of just this spring the amount to overcome shrank significantly, largely because a huge spike in real estate sales produced tens of millions more than expected in transfer taxes. The mayor's budget proposal balances expenses with revenues, as required by law.
During an address that lasted over an hour, Newsom said last year's gloomy economic picture had brightened more than anyone could have imagined and listed wide-ranging plans to reopen recreation centers seven days a week this summer, finish installing a new computer system to link all criminal justice agencies, and triple the number of pothole crews.
With the outdoor backdrop of Rossi Playground behind him, Newsom pointed out $13.2 million dedicated to upgrading recreational fields and other park projects. The total for such projects is a "historic" $51.7 million, he said.
His proposal, which adds up to 6 percent more than the current year's budget, now heads to the Board of Supervisors for weeks of review during hearings in committee next month and final votes scheduled for late July.
After the mayor spoke, Budget and Finance Committee Chair Tom Ammiano said he was happy about some of the restored health services, including a senior fall-prevention program called CHIPPS, but had concerns about remaining plans to shut down a public dialysis clinic and slash certain nonmedical AIDS and HIV services.
Overall, though, Ammiano said he was feeling somewhat relieved. "This budget is not as bad as people thought," he concluded. Some other board members, including Supervisor Chris Daly, have called for greater support for social services this year since they've suffered during the past four years of shortfalls.
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