Mayor Adrian Fenty has not yet provided a copy of proposed budget cuts to the D.C. Council, slowing down council Chairman Vince Gray’s schedule for completing the cuts needed to close a $175 million budget gap, sources told The Washington Examiner.
Mayor-elect Gray has said publicly that he hoped to have a copy of Fenty’s proposals in-hand by the first week in November. The council must wait for the mayor to send down a proposed budget to begin the process of deliberating over it. Gray said last week that he was scheduled to meet with Fenty officials to discuss the meeting, but The Examiner has learned the meeting did not take place.
One source said Fenty is expected to send down his proposal by the end of this week.
Throughout his tenure, Fenty was known for sending budget proposals down at the last minute, leaving the council and the Chief Financial Office with little time to analyze the spending. Gray and Council Chairman-elect Kwame Brown have said they have been meeting with the CFO to discuss the budget changes they’d like to make once they have the mayor’s budget in-hand.
Gray has said he’ll look to cut spending before examining any tax hikes.
