[Kreweoftruth] CITY BUDGET: FROM COUNCILMAN FIELKOW

[CBrylski at aol.com]

Dear New Orleanians,

On December 1st, the City Council engaged in a marathon budget meeting 
resulting in the passage of a balanced 2009 budget, as required by City Charter. I 
would like to take this opportunity to go over some key points with you and to 
explain some of the changes the Council made to the Mayor’s budget proposal.

First, Mayor Nagin submitted his proposed 2009 budget to the City Council on 
October 29th. The Council then had until December 1st to review, make changes 
and ultimately, vote on a balanced budget. A municipal budget is always a 
complex instrument, but it was made even more difficult this year by the Mayor’s 
proposal to increase property taxes by $24 million. The entire Council told the 
Mayor from the very beginning that we would not increase taxes on a still 
struggling population. Therefore, we had to scrutinize the $1.16 billion budget 
to cover the $24 million hole that we faced, and ensure we did not cut any 
essential services.

To do this, the Council relied on a combination of state and federal grants, 
as well as one-time, and likely forgivable, monies such as Community Disaster 
Loans (CDL) to ensure a balanced budget. I believe that the Mayor’s proposal 
to raise property taxes was ill-advised and we were forced to plug holes to 
ensure the smooth operation and continued improvement in city services.

A few things to make note of:

More Funding for NORD
- I offered and passed an Amendment that cuts $200,000 from the Mayor’s 
Office of Communications and puts half of that money towards New Orleans Recreation 
Department (NORD) afterschool programs with the other half going to NORD 
aquatics programs that will ensure that every child in this city can swim.

More Funding for Recovery School District
- The Council voted to defund the Office of Municipal Investigations (OMI) - 
a total of roughly $350,000 – with the money placed on reserve for afterschool 
initiatives for the Recovery School District. This means that the Council, in 
consultation with the RSD, will determine what specific programs the money 
will go to for our school children. Inspector General Robert Cerasoli has 
pledged to take over the functions of the OMI, as it was already performing many of 
the same tasks as the Office of Inspector General.

Closer Scrutiny of the Sanitation Department
- Over the past year, the City Council has asked for, and not received, 
critical information from the Sanitation Department concerning all of New Orleans’ 
sanitation and debris contracts. Because this city has and will continue to 
face stark financial realities for the foreseeable future, every dollar we spend 
must be accounted for. Therefore, last night I proposed a budget Amendment 
that takes half of the Sanitation Department’s 2009 budget and puts it on 
reserve. Currently, we are awaiting an audit of the Sanitation Department and until 
we receive and review that, this money will remain on hold. This will NOT 
affect your sanitation services. We are simply trying to ensure that we spend the 
correct amount of money on sanitation services for this city. 

I hope this clarifies some parts of the budget process for you. The Mayor now 
has until December 10th to accept or veto the budget. Please contact me at 
658-1060 or afielkow at cityofno.com if you have questions or comments.

Sincerely,
Arnie Fielkow
Councilman at Large




cheron brylski
the brylski company
3418 coliseum street
new orleans, louisiana 70115
www.brylskicompany.com
(504) 897-6110
FX (504) 897-0778
cell (504) 460-1468
cbrylski at aol.com



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