Mayor Bloomberg is set to reveal details of his budget for the new fiscal year (which begins July 1), and like recent budgets, the economy's downturn means it'll be rough with the city's projected $4 billion deficit. WCBS 2 reports that, according to sources, "The mayor intends to raise $900 million to close the budget gap by raising the sales tax half a percent," and explains, "The sales tax in New York City will now be 8.875 percent; of which only 4.5 percent is a city tax. The rest goes to the state and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority."
There will also be 3,750 layoffs, which is less than expected, and the city hopes to get rid of another 9,750 through attrition. The NY Times reports that Bloomberg is dropping his plan of asking city employees to contribute to their health care: "Many employees now pay nothing, so a 10 percent contribution could save the city $350 million. But negotiations between the city and the unions have proved difficult. So with two months before the city must fill a $4 billion deficit to balance its budget, administration officials concluded that they did not have the time, or the momentum."
Another proposal, which would save $400 million, is to create a new pension tier for city employees. The Staten Island Advance has the details: "A fifth pension tier would require workers to remain 25 years in their state or local agency in order to receive full retirement benefits, rather than the 20 years the current rules mandate. The plan also would force employees to contribute 3 percent of their salary to the pension fund beyond the 10 years mandated for Tier-Four employees, and wait until age 62, instead of 55, to be eligible for full retirement benefits. Uniformed city employees, such as police and firefighters, would be eligible for full benefits at age 50." However, this would need to be approved by Albany.
