Proposed Service Cuts Spell Disaster for Local Agencies

By HEATHER HADDON

Proposed state and city budget cuts have local nonprofits preparing (if that's even possible) for the worst. From the arts, to after-school programs, to social service agencies, virtually every group expects to be harmed. 

"We're gasping for air over here," said Sally Dunford, who is facing tens of thousands of dollars slashed from her modest budget at West Bronx Housing, which works to prevent evictions by working with tenants and landlords. "This could mean cutting our staff in half. I don't know what we are going to do. The number of people we serve is going to 
plummet."

The case of West Bronx Housing is instructive because, like many other local programs, it ends up saving the government money in the long run. For instance, the agency regularly prevents people from being thrown into the city's overflowing shelter system.

Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Pataki have proposed drastic cuts to compensate for massive budget deficits, the likes of which the city hasn't seen since the 1970s. The two chief executives have approached closing their budget gaps somewhat differently. 
Bloomberg has chosen to raise property taxes while Pataki is looking to increase certain fees. But both have been forced to slash programs and services in the process.

"The administration has some hard choices to make," Dunford acknowledged. "But it seems like cutting services to an agency like ours is shortsighted."

The most protested cuts are in the area of education, where Pataki has proposed raising tuition to public universities by over 40 percent and slashing financial aid programs. Advocates find the governor's proposal to end universal pre-kindergarten-- a program he championed-- particularly galling. 

Arts and cultural institutions also won't be spared. The Bronx Museum of the Arts is now facing cuts of 18 percent of their budget on the heels of reductions in 2002. "Last year we killed programs," said Jenny Dixon, the Museum's executive director, The New York Times. "This year we're killing people" by eliminating four management positions, she said. Another cultural institution-- The New York Botanical Garden-- is also dealing with serious cutbacks. The Garden has reduced its staff size by 5 percent and is considering a 6 percent cut, up to 28 positions, in 2004, according to the Times. They are even considering scaling back operations to five days a week or closing areas of the Garden.

Advocates for city parks, a popular target for budget cutters in recent years, are also steeling for additional cuts. "Both our ability to build and create new facilities, and to maintain the parks at an accessible level will be affected," said Paul Sawyer, executive director of the Friends of Van Cortlandt Park, an advocacy group. 

Also, the Parks Opportunity Program (POP)-- which employs former welfare recipients to clean parks-- is slated for termination. "A dirty park is less likely to be used," said Rowena Daly, a spokeswoman for New Yorkers for Parks, a citywide advocacy group. Widely used in St. James Park, the POP program also adds a sense of safety in local parks, most of which are not regularly patrolled. "These people are very tangible. . . you'll really notice it when they are gone," Daly said.

A whole way of life could be gone for seniors if the $1.2 million in cuts Pataki has slated for Naturally Occurring Retiring Communities (NORCs), including the program at the Amalgamated Houses in Van Cortlandt Village, are implemented. Since the 1980s, NORCs have provided key services to seniors, who otherwise might have to move to a nursing home. "It's wrong and it's foolish," said Ed Yaker, president of Amalgamated House. "NORCs save the state money, as [hospital and nursing home] services are far more expensive."

Dunford also sees the decisions to cut key services as foolhardy. "For every dollar the city spends here, other money comes back," said Dunford about her eviction prevention program. With Housing Court costing $10,000 per eviction case, last year Dunford's agency saved the city over $400,000 by keeping almost 50 tenants in their homes without going to court, according to her estimates. 

While city cuts will hurt, local advocates and politicians are most infuriated by Pataki's proposals. Both Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz have criticized Pataki's choices. "These huge cuts. . . are unacceptable," said Dinowitz in a statement. "A more balanced approach, which includes some service cuts and some emergency temporary tax increases makes more sense."

Groups are beginning to form campaigns to advocate for their causes. A senior group at the Mosholu Montefiore Community Center is busy writing letters to save supplemental programs and subsidies that might be cut from that agency. Dunford is meeting with other housing groups to plot an attack. They probably have a little time. The city's budget doesn't get finalized until June and the state budget, technically due in April, is usually months late. 

In the meantime, advocates are nervously hoping that the future of their agencies, and of their constituents, will not be bleak as now forecasted. "We don't want to spoon-feed people," Dunford said. "But cutting the supports out doesn't make people any stronger."

Back to News Index Page

News | Opinion | Schools | Features | Ongoing Story | Home
About Us | Past Issues