City Council Holds Budget Hearings

Over the past week, members of the City Council have held public hearings on Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s proposed fiscal year 2013 budget requests for more than two dozen city agencies, ranging from the Department of Transportation and the Police Department to the Department of Recreation and Parks and Baltimore City Public Schools.

These hearings, several of which were televised, allowed the public and members of the Council an opportunity to scrutinize the budget requests from city agencies, both large and small.

Collectively, these agency budgets comprise the city’s annual Ordinance of Estimates, which was approved by the Board of Estimates on April 25. The council, in accordance with the City Charter, will vote on the mayor’s annual budget proposal by June 25. The newly enacted budget will take effect June 30.

This year Baltimore faces a $48 million budget deficit, the fifth year in a row that declining revenue has forced city finances into the red.

Please remember to check the council’s website daily for updated information on the timeline for approving the mayor’s preliminary budget for fiscal year 2013.

And feel free to contact me directly with any budget related questions by emailing me at councilpresident@baltimorecity.gov. You may also reach Mayor Rawlings-Blake by emailing her at mayor@baltimorecity.gov.