The Day - | News from southeastern Connecticut

Home
News
Business
Sports
- Columnists
- Local
- High School
  - Saturday Showdown
- UConn
- CT Sun
- CT Tigers
- Colleges
- Professional
  - Auto Racing
  - Baseball
  - Basketball
  - Football
  - Golf
  - Hockey
  - Tennis
Opinion
- Cartoons
- Columnists
- Editorials
- Guest Opinions
- Letters
- Op-Ed
Entertainment
- Advice Columns
- Books
- Celebrities
- Columnists
- Events
- Exhibits
- Food & Dining
  - Restaurant Reviews
- Games
  - Sudoku
  - Crossword
  - Jigsaw
  - More Puzzles
- Horoscopes
- Movies
  - Movie Times
- Music
- Nobody Cartoon
- Stage
- TV
  - TV Listings
Multimedia
classifieds
- Place an Ad
- View Ads
- Cars
- Real Estate
- Jobs
- Pets
deals
coupons
jobs
real estate
business directory
obituaries

Further budget cuts could cripple NL

David Maker New London

Publication: The Day

Published 08/11/2012 12:00 AM

Updated 08/10/2012 06:30 PM

In a sane world, the prospect of extra budget cuts in a community already at the financial brink would excite much soul-searching.

Few administrators would willingly shoulder the responsibility for making the cuts. Anyone charged with that responsibility would be facing some very hard decisions.

New London anticipates a referendum vote that may call for further cuts in the city's budget. These may cripple the city even beyond its present state of austerity.

It would seem, on the strength of a July 27 article, "NL mayor prepares for 'extreme' cuts," that Mayor Daryl Justin Finizio is responding appropriately in a difficult situation.

He has thought through various consolidations and service cuts. He has asked city department heads to present budget revisions reflecting a 2.5 percent decrease from the present proposed budget. He plans to schedule public meetings to lay out what a decrease might mean to the city.

Meanwhile, according to the same article, City Council President Michael Passero maintains that (1) responsibility for budget cuts is none of the mayor's business, but rather the council's; and (2) he is "not yet worried" about what the council may decide to cut.

What?