Oregon Public Broadcasting

Portland’s mayor has released the budget he proposes for the next fiscal year. The city is in for some belt-tightening, as April Baer reports.

After tallying revenues, the city will need to make $5.3 million in spending cuts to keep the budget balanced.

Mayor Sam Adams says there will be no increase in taxes to feed the general fund. Instead, spending will be cut across city departments.

Adams says some projects were prioritized.  Those include basic services funded by the city Housing Bureau.

Sam Adams  “We are being over-run – we are being over-run – with requests for services for basic shelter.”

Federal stimulus money for housing will be stretched out through another year, but various one-time expenditures from last year will go by the wayside.

Other recommended cuts include fifty jobs at the Police Bureau, which Adams hopes to handle through attrition and retirements. 

The city’s popular downtown mounted patrols are slated for elimination.

City council still must approve the final package before the cuts take place.