NATION IN BRIEF : MARYLAND : Mayor to Cut 600 Jobs in Baltimore

Baltimore Mayor Kurt Schmoke said nearly 600 city jobs will be cut and schools will be closed for a week to make up for a $27.5-million reduction in state aid. Schmoke said that schools will be closed during the winter and teachers will be furloughed. Cuts include closing five fire stations, which would eliminate about 250 positions, Schmoke said. Under the plan, the Police Department will absorb a $4-million budget cut through a hiring freeze and deferred equipment purchases. Other savings will be made by closing seven library branches, putting library workers and city prosecutors on a six-day unpaid furlough, shutting down the Baltimore Museum of Art for two weeks and cutting some grant money to public clinics.