In light of the economic challenges facing Boston, City Councilor and Ways and Means Committee Chair Michael Ross (Back Bay, Fenway) announced new initiatives Wednesday for improving the budget process.
One of Ross’ initiatives is a partnership with Northeastern University’s Center for Urban and Regional Policy. CURP, founded in 1999, is a “think and do tank”, according to the center’s website. The faculty, staff and students pool their resources to address a wide range of issues facing cities, towns and suburbs, with particular emphasis on the Greater Boston region.
The faculty and students at Northeastern, under the direction of professors Barry Bluestone, Daryl Hellman and Bruce Wallin, will research the best practices in other cities and review the budget for any potential areas of improvement.
“To my knowledge, this hasn’t been done previously,” Ross said. “We are going to have dedicated faculty members and graduate students committed to the budget process.”
The three other initiatives include: an expansion of budget hearings to include public testimony, evening public hearings in different neighborhoods throughout Boston and making Microsoft Excel spreadsheets available online to encourage public review and analysis.
“Through our partnership with Northeastern University and our input from the public, together, working with the administration, we can identify areas where Boston can work smarter and do more with less,” Ross said. “This year, more than ever, the financial hurdles facing our city will be substantial.”
The 2003 Budget faces a number of fiscal challenges, including the lowest revenue growth in a decade, an increase in public safety expenditures and a 10 percent decrease in state aid, among other cuts.
“For the first time ever, Boston will see a decrease in funding and an increase in state aid,” Ross said. “I can’t recall a time when the budget was so bad.”
The Ways and Means Committee oversees the city’s budget, which includes the individual budgets for over 50 departments including fire, police, schools, inspectional services and public works. The City Council will vote on the 2003 Budget in June.
“The only way to adequately assess the situation is to embark on an exercise that is complete and thorough,” Ross said. “For a process of this magnitude, it will help us to add resources and considerable man power. To not open it to these partnerships would be a mistake.”
Council President Michael Flaherty, an at-large councilor, appointed Ross to the committee chair position. The members of the committee include At-Large Councilors Stephen Murphy and Francis “Mickey” Roache, and Councilors Brian Honan (Allston, Brighton), James Kelly (Downtown, South Boston), Paul Scapicchio (East Boston, North End), John Tobin (Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury) and Charles Yancey (Mattapan, North Dorchester).
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