Posted June 30, 2006. New York City Mayor Makes Libraries Permanent Line-Item

New York City Mayor Makes Libraries Permanent Line-Item

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has agreed to “baseline” funding for the library and two other programs, making them permanent allocations in the city’s annual budget, according to the June 28 New York Daily News. In the past, libraries have been a part of what pundits have dubbed the “budget dance,” in which the mayor would propose cuts that the city council and library leaders would negotiate to restore.

“We’re sending a message that those programs will not, as a matter of course, be cut every year,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn in the June 28 Staten Island Advance.

The mayor had proposed more than $40 million in cuts from the city’s three public library systems. The $52.9-billion FY 2007 budget passed June 30 by the city council retains those funds, ensuring the libraries stay open at least five days per week.

The city currently has a multi-billion surplus that officials say will be used to balance the FY 2007 budget. “I think we’ve come up with the monies that we need to take this city forward, to help those who are really in need, and at the same time, to be cognizant of the fact that the good times aren’t going to be here forever,” Bloomberg said in the Daily News.

The mayor had proposed midyear budget cuts to the city’s libraries January 31, but they were rescinded by the end of February.

Posted June 30, 2006.