City report says Yonkers budget crisis easing

Len Maniace
The Journal News

YONKERS - City officials announced yesterday that the city appears on course to finish the fiscal year with a slight surplus due to spending cuts enacted in recent months, avoiding a $16 million deficit projected in November.

The spending cuts include union givebacks covering the first six months of this year, such as a 2.5 percent raise for the city's Teamsters; firefighters working one day without pay; and parks and public works employees giving up city payments into a union benefit fund.

"So far, what we are doing is working. It's holding our budget in balance," said Mayor Phil Amicone.

But the city's projections of the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, still look difficult, with Finance Commissioner James LaPerche estimating a $108 million deficit for the municipal and school budgets. Though the city has projected similar-sized deficits in the past, Yonkers has relied on state aid to help close them.

"It's going to be a tough year starting July 1, and we will have a better idea just how tough when the state has a budget they feel they can pass," Amicone said. "Because then we will know how much of the money is coming back to the city."

LaPerche said the school system appeared likely to receive $15 million in federal stimulus funding over two years that would provide some help in eliminating the deficit.

The financial analysis for the 2008-09 budget year released yesterday estimates $630.2 million in city spending on municipal services and education, $18.5 million less than projected in the fall when Amicone announced the city faced a $16 million deficit. But the city's revenue projections have worsened with the weakening national economy. The city expects to take in $630.8 million by the end of June, $1.8 million less than previously projected.

To close the budget gap, Amicone originally proposed layoffs of 76 full-time employee, 75 part-time workers and shifting police from special units back to precincts to reduce overtime. The givebacks allowed the city to lay off only four full-time workers and 68 part-timers.

The biggest savings came from three city departments: $4.5 million from police, $2.6 million from the Fire Department and $2.2 million from public works, according to the city's statistics.

City Council President Chuck Lesnick said the council's own financial consultant would review the numbers in coming weeks. Lesnick said he hoped the city would be able to take advantage of the financial crisis to make some permanent changes in city staffing levels to improve Yonkers' finances.

He declined to say which offices he thought should be reduced in size, saying the council would examine that during the coming budget sessions.