FULLERTON : Council Divided on Budget Solutions

At a five-hour meeting Tuesday, city officials and residents debated what programs might be cut and what fees or taxes raised to eliminate a projected $4.2-million city deficit for next year.

Faced with the possibility of closing the Hunt Branch Library, abandoning tree care and paring down the Police and Fire departments, many residents spoke in support of a utility tax or an assessment district.

City Manager James L. Armstrong and department heads presented the City Council with possible cuts and increases and asked the council to set spending priorities.

Council members were divided about what direction to take.

Mayor Molly McClanahan said she supports a 1% utility tax, while the city manager suggested a 3% tax.

Councilman Chris Norby opposed even a small new tax. He said residents would be outraged. “The Boston Tea Party was not stimulated by the size of the tax,” he said.

“There’s no way for us to solve this problem without reducing the number of people who work for the city,” Armstrong said. He said that some workers will retire this year but that there may have to be layoffs. Armstrong and department heads have been reviewing the city’s spending and revenues since November to find ways of closing the budget gap.

“I hope that the city will consider the utility user’s tax,” said resident Carolyn Johnson. She said she is very much opposed to closing the Hunt Branch Library, which is in west Fullerton. “It’s the only community center (there),” she said. “It looks like the library is taking far more hits than is fair,” she said.

Many residents said they worry that the quality of life in the city will deteriorate if services are cut. “The kind of civilization we have is affected,” said Joan Cohen.

Norby, in his comments after Armstrong’s presentation, suggested that the city could save money by contracting out legal work and eliminating the city attorney.

Norby also said that airport, golf and other user fees should reflect the true cost of the service. Armstrong agreed and said the city will probably raise many fees this year.

Councilman Don Bankhead said he opposes cutting the police and fire budgets, which make up about 50% of the city’s total budget. He also opposes raising any taxes, he said.

But if the Fire and Police departments are sheltered from cuts, other departments will suffer very heavily, Armstrong said.

Councilman A.B. (Buck) Catlin said he favors assessment districts but not a utility tax.

And newly elected Councilwoman Julie Sa said she needs time to study the budget. “I don’t want to raise taxes,” she said. “Everybody is in bad shape.”

“The state Legislature put us here in the first place,” Bankhead said.