"I am glad to see a budget agreement on time, and with many important initiatives intact. I thank the Council and the Speaker in particular, in partnership with advocates, for their relentless efforts to not only secure capital investment in key initiatives such as affordable housing, but to oppose austerity and preserve vital programs. Nowhere is this more clear than in our libraries and cultural institutions, and I am grateful that the final budget deal restores crucial funding in these areas.
"At the same time, we should not let relief at undoing the administration’s unnecessary and high-profile cuts to libraries obscure the reality: there are still other unnecessary, less-visible cuts in this budget, and these will have an impact far beyond the fiscal year. I will continue to review the details of the budget deal for a wide range of agencies and issues.
"Finally, it should be clear that announcing services will be slashed, then reversing course months later, is not a sign of strong administrative management; it’s playing politics with programs that people depend on. We need to lead with fiscal and moral responsibility, consider the human cost of cuts, and move forward as strong stewards of not just the city’s finances, but the city’s people."
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