The
2000 Budget: An Investment in the City's Fiscal Health
By
Mayor Rudy Giuliani
When I first became mayor six years ago, New York City was saddled
with a $2 billion budget deficit due to shortsighted economic
policies. Today, as a result of the difficult decisions we made
in controlling the growth of government spending, we have turned
that $2 billion deficit into a $2 billion surplus. New York has
set an example for cities throughout the nation that an adherence
to the basic principles of fiscal responsibility and tax reduction
can put a city firmly in control of its economic destiny. The
cornerstone of this success has been our ability to control the
growth of spending. Since 1994, the City has lowered projected
spending by $15.2 billion. And as a result of our creation of
a Budget Stabilization Account three years ago, the City is prepared
for any downturns or slowdowns in the economy. Last week, I submitted
the Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2001 which builds upon past
successes while providing a sound fiscal structure for the future.
Seventy-one percent of this money will be used to reduce the out-year
gaps. Twenty-one percent will fund targeted educational, public
safety and other initiatives, and an additional eight percent
will be used to reduce taxes even further. This budget reflects
our administration's commitment to improving the quality of life
for all New Yorkers. It's an investment in the City's long-term
fiscal health. Despite the presence of a vibrant economy which
has helped create the largest surplus in the City's history, we're
decreasing City spending for FY 2001 by two percent, and we're
maintaining the budget stabilization account. This is a time to
strengthen our City's fiscal position, not to return to the undisciplined
high-spending policies of the past. We're making targeted tax
reductions to continue the stimulation of record private sector
job growth and economic development. This Executive Budget reflects
our success in reducing taxes by more than $2.4 billion since
1994, by proposing to cut taxes by an additional $364 million.
That will bring the total value of our tax reduction program to
$3.6 billion by 2004- much more than any administration in the
history of the City. Of course, we need to increase spending in
certain specific areas to help cement the progress of the last
six years and improve the quality of life of our city even more.
Crime reduction has been the foundation of our city's resurgence.
New York has been the safest large city in America for four years
and counting. But to ensure that New York remains the safest large
city well into the future requires a commitment to constant improvement.
To that end, the administration has proposed investments to: enhance
the enforcement and prosecution of hate crimes; the funding of
state-of-the-art DNA testing facility, increasing the number of
police officers from 40,210 to 41,440 through federal crime bill
funds, and hiring more school safety officers to ensure a safe
learning, teaching and working environment. To continue to meet
the educational needs of our city's children, the Executive Budget
provides the Board of Education with a record $11.4 billion in
funding. As a result of the policy to end social promotion, failing
students are expected to attend summer school this July. This
budget provides an increase in summer school funding, as well
as for air conditioning in the classrooms. Additional investments
in education include expansion of the truancy reduction program
TRACK (Truancy Reduction Alliance to Contact Kids), increased
funding for school sports, and the proceeds from the sale of the
Board of Education building. Merit pay for principals is already
being funded as a result of an historic agreement, and we hope
to be able to achieve merit pay for teachers as well. Those are
just a few of the many initiatives in this budget that I believe
will improve the quality of life for all New Yorkers. I look forward
to working with all the people of the city to secure these important
changes as we work to build on our successes in the new millennium.
Education Update, Inc., P.O. Box 20005, New York, NY 10001. Tel:
(212) 481-5519. Fax: (212) 481-3919. Email: ednews1@aol.com.
All material is copyrighted and may not be printed without express consent of
the publisher. © 2001.
|