Councilmember Calhoun Supports Collaborative Budget Team Work
01/03/2003
FRESNO, CA (January 3, 2003) Councilmember Brian Calhoun announced today that he remains diligent, yet optimistic, about the City of Fresno’s ability to work collaboratively to meet the budget challenges that currently face all branches of government. “Since last year, the Mayor, City Council and City staff have been working to prepare for tough economic times and potential cuts as a result of anticipated state budget shortfalls. I commend the direction given by the City Manger months ago to prepare contingency budgets reflecting potential cuts handed down by the state,” said Calhoun.
When asked about his reaction to an across the board hiring freeze, Calhoun responded: “What I do support is the stringent hiring policy currently in place. The reason the City currently has hundreds of unfilled positions is because during previous budget sessions, the Council supported the City Manager’s direction to carefully scrutinize and sometimes deny requests to hire employees,” said Calhoun. Calhoun further stated that, “Although a City-wide hiring freeze may sound like a proactive approach, it often comes with the unintended consequences of potentially crippling critical City services such as the delivery of clean water, garbage pick ups and transportation. Simply enacting a hiring freeze wouldn’t be enough to meet our challenges, what we need is a comprehensive budget strategy which increases our efficiencies and provides further savings to the taxpayer.”
Calhoun also supports a debate on a 2% across the board budget reduction. “I feel that asking all departments including the Mayor and City Council to tighten our belts to provide a 2% budget savings, which does not include cutting city workers, is very reasonable. This action could provide the City with immediate opportunities for investment and job growth. I look forward to working with the Mayor and Council to rise to this budget challenge and know together as a team, we can continue to move the city forward,” said Calhoun.
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