Public Employee Press

City to reduce waste in budget reviews

When Budget Director Dean Fuleihan instructed agency heads to review their budgets in November, he asked them to find savings by "reducing the use of consultants and contracting" - a move right out of DC 37's playbook.

He didn't mention downsizing or call for a Program to Eliminate the Gap by cutting employees and slashing spending - as the city has done ever since the mayoralty of the late Ed Koch (1978-1989).

The de Blasio administration has scrapped the once-dreaded PEG. Instead, this time the mayor's office is asking administrators to review the fiscal health of their agencies with a scalpel rather than an ax.

"After decades of downsizing, service cuts and wasteful spending on contracting out, it is refreshing to see an administration that appears to be fiscally responsible while not obsessing about headcount reductions and eliminating services," DC 37 Executive Director Henry Garrido said.

"The change is really one in tone," DC 37 Research and Negotiations Director Evelyn Seinfeld said. "Hopefully, this means the bean-counting mentality with its rigid emphasis on reducing headcount and government services is a thing of the past."

In his letter, Fuleihan said, "As we prepare our recommendations, for both the Preliminary Budget and the Executive Budget for the years 2015-2019, we will build on the mayor's principles by creating a plan that is fiscally responsible, progressive and honest." Besides reining in wasteful contracting, he asked administrators to explore productivity initiatives, restructuring and consolidating programs, and eliminating or reducing inefficient programs.

The city expects to end this year with a surplus. It projects budget gaps of under $2 billion in each of the next few fiscal years. Assistant Director Raymond Santander of the DC 37 Research and Negotiations Dept. said those shortfalls are manageable in a $75 billion municipal budget. He noted that the city has added 3,000 workers this year.