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Mayor Garcia Says He'll Recommend Restoring "Economic Development Bureau," Makes No Mention Of Restoring Public Safety (Police or Fire) Services Previously Provided To Taxpayers

Will offer his recommendations at July 22 evening budget meeting


(July 18, 2014, 10:40 a.m.) -- In remarks at the July 17 meeting of 3rd district neighborhood groups at the LB Yacht Club held under newly elected Councilwoman Suzie Price, newly installed Mayor Robert Garcia said he will make budget recommendations to the City Council at a Tuesday July 22 evening budget session that will include restoring an "Economic Development Bureau" but made no mention of restoring public safety services (police or fire) previously provided to taxpayers and eliminated under a former Council majority that included him under exited Mayor Bob Foster.

Mayor Garcia called elimination of the "Economic Development Bureau" a "casualty of the recession" and said it's "something that's really critical" and will be back in a "new way that will be innovative, that will be forward thinking, that will ensure that we're being proactive when it comes to bringing business and really providing a direct link between economic development and education as well."

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Mayor Garcia said the "single most important thing is ensuring that we stay financially responsible" and voiced what amounts to city management's budget stance shared by now-exited Mayor Foster (who made his own FY15 budget recommendations a week earlier.). Both management and Foster recommended that a portion of a current General Fund "surplus" be put aside.

However management and Foster both acknowledged that the "surplus" put aside is expected to be needed to address upcoming anticipated deficits [spending expected to exceed revenue] starting in 2017. Garcia didn't mention the expected deficits and told the audience that the city "is in a position now where we have a surplus, and I know that Councilwoman Price and I have discussed this, we're going to ensure that the days of overspending are over, that we focus on putting money into our reserves, that we build a strong financial base, that will ensure that moving forward we keep our libraries open where they need to be, that we're funding our public safety resources adequately, that we have money put away for a future rainy day, for providing the basic services that our residents expect."

In her remarks, Councilwoman Price said Mayor Garcia has chosen her to chair Council's Public Safety Committee (which Garcia chaired under Mayor Foster) and she will also be a member of the Council's Economic Development Committee. (Council committees have no independent enacting/blocking powers but hold meetings and can make non-binding voted recommendations to the full City Council.)

Neither Garcia nor Price made any mention of beginning to restore portion of public safety services for taxpayers including police (200 officers no longer provided) and fire services (fire engines no longer provided at Belmont Shore Fire Station 8, Los Altos Station 17 and ELB Station 18) which were eliminated under Mayor Foster by his supportive Council majorities, which included Garcia.

Under LB's City Charter, the Mayor can recommend but has no enacting power, and a Council majority has the power to accept or reject budget recommendations -- and take taxpayer and neighborhood group testimony and input into account -- in making its own budget enactment motions and adopting a FY15 budget by Sept. 15. The Council's budget enacting action is subject to a line-item Mayoral veto, which six Council votes can override. A Council majority can also modify most of its spending budget "on any Tuesday" (at any properly agendized meeting) after the budget is adopted.

LBREPORT.com plans to carry the July 22 Council budget session LIVE. Details to follow.



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