March 9, 2009

Council Report

Budget process begins this month

By Councilmember Judy Chirco
Special to the Times

One of my main responsibilities each year as a member of the City Council is to vote on the city’s budget.

The budget has an effect on everything the city does, from how many days our libraries are open each week, to how our parks are maintained, to how often our streets are repaved. We use the budget to make decisions about what we value as a city – what services we want to provide and how we want to provide them.

The budget for the 2009-2010 fiscal year will be developed as part of a four-month process beginning this month and ending with final approval of the budget in June. This year’s process will be especially difficult, because like everyone else, San Jose has to reckon with a very bad economy. The economic downturn means lower sales and property taxes, which lower the amount of revenue the city has to spend on services. Our current projections anticipate a $65 million deficit. We may be able to make up some of that amount by adopting more efficient service models and doing more with less, but unfortunately we will also have to make service cuts and lay off employees.

Whenever the city has to make difficult decisions, I think it’s especially important for our citizens to be informed and involved. To that end, I want to give you some background information on what services the city provides and how much we spend on them. Our city auditor’s office recently put out a report that I’ve found very useful in thinking about upcoming budget choices. It’s called the Service Efforts and Accomplishments Report, and it breaks down spending and performance measure data for city services in an easy-understand format. It can be found at www.sanjoseca.gov/clerk/ganda/20090203/20090203-0305.pdf. It’s an excellent overview of what city government does, and what budget choices we’ve made in the past.

I’d also like to have you a look ahead at the budget process this spring. The mayor will release his budget documents on March 6. The mayor’s March budget message sets out the principles and priorities that guide city staff as they prepare the proposed budget. There will be a public hearing on March 10.

In late April and early May, the city manager will release her proposed budgets. Budget study sessions scheduled for May 6 – 15 are an opportunity for council members to discuss the budget and ask questions of the city staff in a public forum. On May 12 the council will hold an evening public hearing to gather citizen input on the proposed budgets. The mayor’s June budget message released on June 5 will change the proposed budget based on input from the council and citizens. The final approval of the budget will be June 16.

I hope this information is useful to you in learning about San Jose’s budget process. If you have any questions, or would like to give me your opinion on the upcoming budget decisions, please contact my office at (408) 535-4909 or send an e-mail to district9@sanjoseca.gov.

You can track the process from the city of San Jose’s Web site. Here are some specific web addresses. The mayor’s budget messages will be on his Web site once they are released – www.sanjoseca.gov/mayor/goals/budget/budget.asp The city manager’s proposed budget will be available at www.sanjsoeca.gov/budget/Agendas for upcoming budget meetings will be available at www.sanjoseca.gov/clerk/agenda.asp.

District 9 activities
Bring your youngsters to the Camden Community Center on Saturday, April 4 for a morning of springtime crafts, games, face painting and family memories. There will be egg hunts for each age group and a chance to take pictures with the Big Bunny. Each child will receive a goodie bag filled with surprises.

Space is limited; pre registration is required. There $5 fee for children ages 1 to 10 with children 12 months and younger are free, but all need to be registered. The event is scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon. The Camden Center is located at, 3369 Union Ave. Egg hunts will be 15 minutes per age group beginning at 10:30 a.m. for 0–1 years; 10:45 a.m. for 2–4 years; 11 a.m. for 5–7 years and 11:15 a.m. for 8 –10 years old.

Register at the Center or mail/fax registration using the Citywide Activity guide found on line at www.sanjoseca.gov. For further information: 408-559-8553.

On Feb. 18, residents received the first look at the city’s new online activities registration program. In preparation for the launch of the new system, active participants received notification via e-mail with instructions on how to set up an online account with the new program. The program allows participants to search for activities at any of the city’s parks and recreation facilities from any computer.

Walk-in and mail-in registration is still available and will be treated equally; however, all city residents are encouraged to go to www.sanjoseca.gov/prns/register to set up an account. Contact your local community center and ask about the dates and times for their launch party. Registration for spring classes, sports leagues and spring camps begins Saturday, March 7 at 10 a.m. Registration for summer day camps and summer aquatics programs begins Saturday, March 14 at 10 a.m. For more information, call (408) 793-5527.

The children’s health insurance sign-up day will be held at Rosemary School – Family Learning Center on Wednesday, March 11 from 2 - 6 p.m. Families can apply for free or low-cost health insurance. The Westside Schools Children’s Health Insurance Collaborative made up of Campbell Union High School, Cambrian, Union, Moreland, Campbell Union Elementary, and Luther Burbank School Districts is coordinating the event.

State–certified enrollment staff will be at the school to assist parents with the application process to see if their children are eligible for coverage for Medi-Cal, Healthy Families, Healthy Kids or Kaiser Permanente’s Child Health Plan. All four programs provide comprehensive medical, dental and vision care. This coverage is free or low cost, and immigration status does not matter.

Medi-Cal and Healthy Families are public insurance programs; Healthy Kids is a locally funded insurance program—the first of its kind in the nation—that covers children who do not qualify for Medi-Cal or Healthy Families.

Rosemary Elementary School is located at 401 West Hamilton Ave., between Highway 17 and San Tomas Expressway in Campbell. For further information on children’s health insurance, call (408) 961-9893 or 800-260-2055.

If you wish to receive periodic e-mails from my office please visit the District 9 Web site at www.sanjoseca.gov/district9 and click on “Join Judy’s e-mail list.” As always, if you have any questions, comments or concerns, please feel free to contact our office at District9@sanjoseca.gov or (408) 535-4909.