The facts city leaders face are stark. Plunging revenues from housing sales and motor vehicle taxes combined with ballooning pension obligations created a $65 million hole. The state cut $26 million in aid this year and warned local leaders of the prospect of even deeper cuts to come.
Dixon is showing no signs of backing down. At a Downtown Baltimore Partnership breakfast Thursday, Dixon singled out Rochelle "Rikki" Spector - the only council member in attendance - during her address, saying she was confident Spector would help her fend off the council's threats to slash her budget.
"The City Council is tearing up my budget," Dixon said. "Rikki, keep those votes I need to pass my budget."
Spector smiled uncomfortably.
In an interview later, Dixon said the council's efforts to cut other agencies in an attempt to restore funding to recreation and community programs "is not going to work."
"They should know that won't work, and they should want to work with me to address the issues with those programs," Dixon said.
But that posture only fueled the council members' ire. City Council President Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake e-mailed council members Thursday pledging that, unlike the mayor, she would never "belittle" their advocacy.
"What prompted me to write that to my colleagues is there's been a line drawn in the sand," Rawlings-Blake said. "There has not been the same respect."
The mayor's comments were fighting words to often outspoken Councilman Bernard "Jack" Young, who warned his colleagues in an e-mail that they will "continue to be seen as rubber stamps" if they back down from efforts to save their priority programs. Ignoring the council's will is "a slap in the face to all of us."
The administration defended its decisions, including maintaining the four public works information officers, with officials noting that the staffers do more than reach out to the news media.
While much of council's passion has been focused on about $1.2 million worth of community program cuts, Dixon described the budget woes as "a good opportunity to right-size." She said she had been "very disappointed" with what she saw in her visits to some of the city's recreation and Police Athletic League centers.
"Truth be told, some of the PAL centers had no recreation going on," she said.
Her budget proposal shortens some recreation center hours and shifts the PAL program to the Department of Recreation and Parks.
Reacting to the council's continuing quest to tap into nearly $100 million in city reserves, Dixon said it was "understandable that my colleagues are very concerned" about the economy.
Next year's city tax revenues will likely be even worse for the city, the three pension plans will demand even more money and state budget officials are set to give council members their own gloomy outlook for the budget year starting July 2011.
