Montgomery council members unanimously shot down spending cuts Tuesday that might have hurt fire and rescue response times and programs for the needy, but in doing so eliminated millions in savings proposed by County Executive Ike Leggett.
In December, Leggett recommended $23.6 million in immediate cuts to help head off a $401 million projected budget gap for the fiscal year that begins in July. Council members voted to remove about $4.5 million, or nearly 20 percent, of what Leggett wanted to cut from the current budget.
“We understand that these sorts of reductions are not easy…but doing less now may mean just delaying the day of reckoning,” Leggett’s spokesman Patrick Lacefield told The Examiner.
The cuts opposed by the council included taking a Hillandale firetruck out of service, transferring nighttime Emergency Medical Services resources from Glen Echo and Laytonsville to other areas, and destaffing a Germantown rescue squad, all of which were described in memos as likely increasing rescue squad response time.
“The actions we are about to take on fire and rescue reflect the council’s value that emergency response time is one of the most important things county government does, if not the most important thing,” Council Vice President Phil Andrews said.
Council members also voted to protect a summer camp program for disadvantaged children and a county-subsidized taxi ride program for low-income seniors and disabled residents from spending cuts. The county executive himself decided not to eliminate the popular “Kids Ride Free” program on county buses, after hundreds of residents called county offices to complain.
Leggett’s proposed cuts came after he asked all department heads to brainstorm ways to reduce current spending by 2 percent.
“This is the beginning of the wake-up call,” council member Marilyn Praisner said. “The other shoe is going to drop when the next budget comes forward and there are going to be tough choices for everyone.”
Still being cut
Even after council council members blocked some spending cuts, many programs will still be trimmed:
» A 25 percent reduction in the next class of police recruits
» Hiring freezes in public schools, Montgomery College and county government positions
» The elimination of some county bus routes
» Multiple programs delayed
