Salt Lake City residents, staff must 'make do with a little less,' mayor says

Faced with "the most difficult financial challenge in many decades," Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker called for sacrifices from city employees and residents Tuesday as he presented a 2010 budget that is $12 million smaller than a year ago.

"While these times are hard, we pull together to tighten our belts and learn how to make do with a little less," Becker said Tuesday night.

The city's general fund will be slashed from $210 million a year ago to $198 million to address revenue streams that have been hit hard by the economic downturn. In Salt Lake City, sales tax has dropped $4.6 million and building permit fees are expected to be $4.5 million short of last year's mark.

To avoid City-County Building layoffs, Becker asked all city employees to accept a 1.5 percent pay cut and bear additional health-care costs.

"Just like many city residents are feeling the hardships of an economic recession, Salt Lake City employees from the top down will share some of the economic pain," he said.

The budget shortfalls were not as bad as some council members had expected.

"It's not without its pain, but it could be worse," said City Council Chairman Carlton Christensen, who worried the city might have to go through layoffs or force employees to take steeper pay cuts. "There are reasons for optimism, but being cautious and prudent will serve us well."

The mayor's recommended budget does not include increases in property and sales taxes, but it does call for increasing or creating a number of city fees and other "nontraditional methods of increasing revenue."

A 10 percent increase in general cemetery fees and a 50 percent increase in the fee for Saturday and holiday services would generate an additional $77,000.

Becker is proposing to increase parking ticket late fees by $10 per late period, bringing in an estimated $162,000 more each year. As the city increasingly moves toward online services, it would charge $1 per transaction to cover credit card costs.

The mayor's plan also calls for increasing fees for business licenses, traffic pleas in abeyance and small-claims filings, among others.

"I don't think there's going to be a lot of wiggle room in this budget," said Councilwoman Jill Remington Love. "There might be a few small things the council changes. One of them might the business license fees.

"But the money has to come from somewhere," she added.