For the seventh time in four years Mayor Bloomberg has announced from upon high that city agencies must trim the fat off their books. Just like he did earlier this year, Bloomberg has declared that almost all city agencies need to cut off two percent of their budgets for this fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2012. Crazier, he expects them to trim an additional six percent next year. That should save about $500 million this year and $1.5 billion next year. So maybe now is not the time to quit your job to follow your dream of being a low-level city employee? more ›

During today's torrential rains, your cheap bodega umbrella wasn't the only thing leaking: reader Johanna Clearfield, who was headed to Brooklyn, passed along this video of the Fulton Street A/C subway stop leaking water on one side of the platform. MTA workers are herding passengers through the soaked area, telling them to "keep going" lest the stone above begins to crumble. more ›

Hurrahs are in order for the New York Public Library today, which was saved from potentially devastating city budget cuts. It was a tough battle, with a supporting campaign that involved publicly hugging the stone lions in front of the Stephen A. Schwartzman building, and vaguely threatening letters from small children ("Dear Mr. Mayor, DO NOT I repete DO NOT CUT the Librarys Buggets OR Else!!"). more ›

Not only are MTA buses slower than taking a big wheel tricycle, they're trying to kill us in creative, Final Destination-esque ways. Wheels have come flying off MTA buses twice in 2011, with one incident captured on a surveillance camera. Union leaders claim that the flying wheels are the direct result of MTA cutbacks on maintenance, allegations an MTA spokesman denies to the Daily News. "There have not been changes to maintenance schedules," he says, "Maintenance is not being deferred." more ›

The New York Public Library's Stephen A. Schwarzman Building may be made of stone, but that doesn't mean it couldn't use a hug, right? Tomorrow the group Urban Librarians Unite is planning to do just that—they're holding a "hug the library" event! more ›

We've already had a dose of bad news today about the fictional Special Victim's Unit, and now comes bad news for the real-life equivalent: in the midst of the budget crunch, the city is planning on axing its hospitals' special victim's units. "What kind of message are we sending victims of sexual assault?" Brooklyn City Councilman David Greenfield rhetorically asked the News. more ›

Oswind David, who as we reported yesterday was jailed for almost five years despite the charges against him being dropped, will be released pending $75,000 bail. "It's what I have been praying for," David told reporters. The Brooklyn DA's office continues to proclaim David's guilt because "a jury would have convicted him of a lesser charge of second degree assault," in a rare legal maneuver called a "Minority Report." more ›

Earlier this week, NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly mentioned that the police department wasn't recruiting any new officers given their tight budget. But according to a report released yesterday from the Independent Budget Office (below), it could be worse than previously thought. The report estimates that by June 2012 the NYPD will have shrunk to just 34,413, and NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said they projected they'll be at 34,060 officers. That would be the lowest number of NYPD officers since 1992. more ›

2011 continues to be the Year of the Tightening Belt, as Mayor Bloomberg announced yesterday that city agencies will be forced to cut 2% of their yearly funding to plug a $600 million hole in the budget. more ›

Early this morning the House of Representatives approved $60 billion in cuts in federal spending, including blocking all federal Title X funding for Planned Parenthood. And that's causing a bit of an uproar. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said, “The time has come to respect the wishes of the majority of Americans who adamantly oppose using taxpayer dollars for abortions.” However, by law no Title X funds can be used for abortion. Instead, it would make things like free HIV testing, breast and cervical cancer screening, family planning and prenatal care out of reach for many Americans. more ›

With Gov. Cuomo's first budget proposal since taking office imminent, Mayor Bloomberg announced yesterday that city schools could be facing a $1 billion budget cut, which could spell massive teacher layoffs. On his WOR radio show yesterday, he raised the specter that as many as 21,000 teachers could lose their jobs this year: "Scuttlebutt is that the education budget will be cut statewide, and New York City's share of that would be a billion-dollar cut." more ›

The FDNY's annual "beefcake" calendar is back, ladies (and gents). While the presses were stopped back in 2008 after a nude video of one firefighter showed up on a gay porn site, the incident didn't stop New York's Bravest from posing again. And with a new year ahead, it seems they've found a new charity they just had to help out: the FDNY! The calendar has always raised money for charity, but the FDNY has never taken money for themselves, but according to the NY Post, money is tight and they could really use the estimated $300,000 earned from their Calendar of Heroes. Why not? more ›

There's been a lot of news about the city's and the nation's education system this past week. The city is getting ready to fund education reforms, President Obama cited statistics showing America's students rank 24th in Math knowledge among developed nations, and most of Staten Island's schools failing. In light of all that, the city's DOE decided that things like after-school tutoring, arts programs and sports practices just aren't worth the money. more ›

City workers have joined the non-stop protest action yesterday outside City Hall, where 99 unions representing over 300,000 workers mobilized as part of the "Save Our City" rally. The protest drew thousands and spanned four blocks on Broadway. Each union sported a different color shirt displaying their personal plea—to save our schools, firehouses, libraries, hospitals, sanitation services, hospitals—but the messages coalesced around the worry that Bloomberg's proposed budget cuts would end vital jobs and services. more ›

Over the weekend, librarians and their supporters spoke up on the steps of the Brooklyn Public Library in Grand Army Plaza, saying: "We Will Not Be Shushed." The group read from stacks of books throughout their marathon "book-in" protest, where they also raised their voices against proposed cuts. By month's end 40 libraries could be shut down, with others getting new, reduced hours. more ›

The NY Times reports that Mayor Bloomberg's big budget cuts will severely effect an Administration for Children's Services program focused on preventing abuse and helping families in trouble. Bloomberg wants to cut $12 million "and because the state matches city money for the agency, by nearly 2 to 1, the total reduction would amount to more than $35 million." more ›

The next casualties of the state's budget problems may be the state's parks—just in time for summer! The State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation has said it will close 55 parks and historic sites around the state in response to Paterson's budget cuts, and parks not on the chopping block could see reduced hours and closed facilities. The proposed cuts include closing Bayswater Point State Park in Queens, Riverbank State Park in Harlem and closing the pool and canceling 4th of July fireworks at Jones Beach State Park. more ›

Last month word got out that budget cuts would lead to more rodents in our fair city, with the Department of Health cutting pest control aides on payroll from 84 to 57. Now the Daily News reports—screeching atop a dining room table, we imagine—"we'll be overrun by rats!" more ›

A recent uptick in crime—and startling incidents like the Times Square Easter night "wilding" and yesterday's Brooklyn shooting that wounded three including a five-year-old—has people wondering if the "bad old days" of crime are back. more ›

Will budget cuts yield more rodents for the city? The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene is trimming the number of pest control aides they have on payroll, from 84 to 57! The move will save them $1.5MM (it was mandated that they cut their budget by 15%), but at what cost. more ›

With Bloomberg blaming this year's murder spike on the budget cuts, the NYPD is under pressure to keep the uptick from becoming an overall trend. NYPD heads held an emergency meeting this weekend to figure out ways to keep crime under control. Detectives Endowment Association President Michael Palladino told the Post, "It's a critical time. It has to be all hands on deck, because you could quickly revert back to the bad old days. It's a part of history that we don't want to revisit." more ›

Despite having been brushed aside as a “spectator” by an Assembly Democrat, Gov. Paterson claims he’s “been very active” in wrestling out a budget to fix the state’s $9 billion deficit. In fact, it’s those other guys who are lazy. “I've called for budget meetings, which they don't seem to want to do," Paterson said after an appearance at the Hillcrest Jewish Center in Flushing, reports the Post, adding that, "We've done everything we're supposed to do." more ›

Yesterday, after the Daily News reported that NYC crime rates for murders and shootings have increased 22.8% and 16.3%, respectively, in the last year, Mayor Bloomberg took up the topic during John Gambling's radio show. And guess what—he says that it's totally due to the decreasing number of cops due to budget cuts! Bloomberg said, "It is worrisome." more ›

If June 2011 budget cuts go through as planned, the city's police force will drop to just 32,817, reports the Daily News. That's over 8,000 less than the city's peak of 40,864 in October 2000, and would bring us to the lowest headcount since 1990. Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. said, "These cuts will bring us back to a time when people had to put 'No Radio' signs in their cars and squeegee men roamed the streets." more ›

With a $9.2 billion state deficit on his hands, Gov Paterson says he's "not optimistic at all" about getting a budget out by April 1st. The governor said recently that in order to avoid raising taxes (a proposed tax on sugary beverages like soda doesn't seem like it will succeed) he'll most likely make massive cuts to the school system, health care and government agencies. But some lawmakers say the delay should be attributed not to the tough economy or a ten day break for Passover and Easter, but to Paterson's infamous "laziness." more ›

Unsurprisingly, transit employees have joined the movement of opposition to student MetroCard elimination, just one of the many cuts threatening their mother company, the MTA. "The City of New York has a responsibility to ensure that our children have the means to get to school," the Transport Workers Union's president said Sunday. Union members signed a petition, urging the DOE to increase its efforts to save the student fares by putting pressure on the state to restore funding, reports the News. This year, NY state cut its contribution from $45 million to $6 million, a fraction of the $214 million the MTA spends on free cards for kids annually. Still, a spokesman for Bloomberg says he's committed to keeping them. "The city has been doing its part that the program stays in place," he said. more ›

On CBS yesterday Paterson said his troubles date back long before he was accused of ethics violations or charged with misusing state police. “The difficulty and disaster greeted me and have dictated most of the decision making through my term,” he said, adding that now, with a $9 billion deficit, he has little option but to make massive budget cuts. As for his alleged indiscretions, Paterson wouldn’t comment, though he claimed he'd been honest throughout the investigation. more ›

Forget the British and American versions of The Office, the Wildlife Conservation Society wants to show what an animal-run office is like. As a follow-up to their viral hit last year, featuring a porcupine getting laid off after budget cuts, they present: "A Beaver Took My Job." more ›

Uptown on the A and C lines, the MTA is testing out convenient countdown clocks like the ones used in L train terminals. "I think it's great," said Richard Lehman at 145th St. "I never understood why they didn't do it before." The answer? Because they're expensive and the authority has cash-flow problems—in recent days it's been criticized for its constant and unpredictable service cuts and changes. Timers at four stations—145th, 155th, 163rd and 168th streets—cost $20,000, and and though expansion of the system may be more of a band-aid than a solution, passengers are grateful nonetheless. "It's good to know how long it's going to be because you have other options, different choices," said another rider at a newly-equipped terminal. more ›