Long Beach Dept. Heads Told to Cut Nonsalary Costs

Long Beach City Manager Jack Schnirman sent a memo to each department head last Wednesday calling for an immediate 25 percent cut to nonsalary lines in an effort to help close a $10.2 million deficit for the current fiscal year that ends June 30.

Schnirman’s memo noted that if these cost-cutting measures were not met, comptroller Jeff Nogid was instructred to reduce the department’s budget to that target, and while the city manager projected this measure could save roughly $375,000, Nogid said Friday that some department heads proposed to cut more than 25 percent, potentially saving the city nearly $1 million, according to Newsday. Schnriman said:

"This is an important step in the process to identify immediate savings as we come back from the deficit, and as we enter the budget process.”

The city manager’s memo was sent the day after the City Council voted unanimously to approve $6 million in revenue anticipation notes to meet payroll and cover expenses for basic services.

Councilman Michael Fagen told Patch on Sunday that spending cuts should have started in January, after the Democrat administration took office and knew the city faced a $6 million deficit.

"We are spending roughly $800,000 per month more than we are taking in," Fagen said. "Making symbolic budget cuts that will save a fraction of that, while you are borrowing $6 million, and promising to borrow more, is just alot of PR."

In early February, the City Council voted unanimously to declare a fiscal emergency, giving the city manager greater authority to manage the city’s finances. Moody’s Investors Service, which downgraded the city’s bond rating in December, called the fiscal move a “credit positive.”