S.F. Tightens Belt With $1.9-Billion Balanced Budget

The Board of Supervisors here Tuesday approved a belt-tightening, $1.9-billion budget that includes cuts and rate increases affecting everyone from cable car riders to art lovers and zoo and library patrons.

The supervisors, in a meeting that began Monday afternoon and concluded at 2 a.m. Tuesday, approved most of Mayor Art Agnos’ proposed cuts of $75 million and tax and fee increases totaling $61 million.

The budget includes a wage freeze for the city’s 24,000 employees for a savings of $43 million, plus a reduction in the work force during the next year of roughly 200 employees.

“The budget is balanced, it has a prudent reserve and it should keep our bond ratings intact,” Deputy Mayor Sam Yockey said. “Overall, it is a very positive result.”

Budget Surplus

City Hall has been in a budget crisis since the beginning of the year when Agnos took over from former Mayor Dianne Feinstein. San Francisco, which a few years back had a budget surplus of $152 million, faced a deficit of $179 million this year.

Agnos and supervisors managed to avert some of the more dramatic cuts that had been contemplated, including closure of four neighborhood libraries and reduction of fire department crews.

But hours were reduced at the main library, and fees affecting residents and tourists alike will go up. The price of a ride on city buses will increase by a dime to 85 cents and some lines will be eliminated.

A cable car ride will cost $2, up from $1.50. Admission to Coit Tower will double to $3. Prices for the Japanese Tea Garden and museums in Golden Gate Park will remain $4 for adults but will double to $2 for youths and senior citizens, and zoo admission will go up a dollar to $5 for adults.

Despite objections from several supervisors, the board acceded to Agnos’ request that it levy more taxes on business in the form of higher payroll and gross receipts taxes and a $200 fee for new small business licenses.

‘Passed Along’

“The business taxes that were passed obviously will be passed along to consumers,” said Supervisor John Molinari, chairman of the board’s Finance Committee and an opponent of the tax increases. “But it is certainly not as bad as it might have been.”

The supervisors postponed action on Agnos’ proposal to increase taxes on hotels and fees on parking. The board’s budget includes a $12-million reserve, down from the $16 million the mayor had requested.

Yockey said most of cuts were in administrative costs, adding that “from a public standpoint, there won’t be much visibility.” The number of police officers on the streets is expected to remain about the same, but through attrition, there will be 45 fewer officers in administrative jobs by year’s end.

Despite the cuts and tax increases, the city is not out of the crisis. Nurses at San Francisco General Hospital are considering striking next week. Labor contracts for all city workers expire next June. After a year of frozen pay, they may seek as much as $90 million in salary increases.

‘Internal Problems’

“Looking ahead to next year, we have to solve some very serious internal problems,” Molinari said, predicting layoffs. “We have got to get employment under control by getting some reasonable salary-setting formulas.”

The budget includes an extra $2.5 million and 60 nursing positions at San Francisco General Hospital, in part because of the worsening acquired immune deficiency syndrome epidemic here, Yockey said.

“It’s one of the areas we certainly didn’t cut,” he said of AIDS funding, which totals $10 million from the general fund. “. . . We’re looking at a doubling or a tripling in the caseload (in coming years). That will be a significant need, and it is certainly going to be increasing faster than any kind of state or federal assistance.”