Many disabled local residents who regularly ride paratransit buses were among the approximately 250 people who turned out for a Monday afternoon public hearing on proposed cuts to Sacramento’s Regional Transit. The disabled transit riders — which included many people in wheelchairs — urged the RT board of directors to maintain paratransit services. In the 2011 fiscal year, RT predicts it will have a $25 million budget gap according to a statement on the RT website. The statement notes that RT has been hammered by low revenues from state and local taxes, as well as by the state’s discontinuation of State Transit Assistance funding. In addition, the statement points out that furloughs and

Sacramento school board approves layoffs to help solve budget deficit About 430 teachers and other school staff, 125 central office workers would lose jobs By Maria L. Lopez March 4, 2010 – Elementary class sizes will be larger and about 430 teachers and other school staff would lose their jobs under a plan approved by the Sacramento school board Thursday night for millions of dollars in spending cuts to close a $30.6 million budget deficit. The Sacramento City Unified School District board voted unanimously Thursday night to approve the cuts to take effect in the next school year unless the district’s unions join the administration in agreeing to concessions to stave off some of the cu

There is no doubt that businesses in general have suffered through our ever-changing economy. Businesses on multiple levels have had to make sacrifices; downsizing, cutting salaries, furloughing, laying off, and certainly cutting expenses.Small business, especially in Sacramento, is no exception. One expense that seems to be a commonality, is the Company Holiday Party. Historically, no matter how large or small an office or business is, company's have celebrated the holidays and their accomplishments with their partners, employees, and sometimes, vendors and customers. It is a time when people put work aside, and come together over food, drinks, entertainment and memories that often survi

The California State University system faces a $1.27 billion dollar cut in its 2009-10 General Fund Budget from one year ago.  While total enrollment is up 4,000 students across the CSU system, budget outlays are 55 percent less than they were in 2008-09. To balance the CSU budget, the CA Board of Trustees has enacted a three prong approach. Teachers will be furloughed twice a month in order to save jobs, classes are being cancelled to save cash, and students will see a 32 percent increase in their student fees.  This is the seventh time in eight years that student fees have gone up, and students are finding it very difficult to graduate because the classes they need have either been canc

To call them simply “firefighters” is an understatement. The men of Station 6 of the Sacramento Fire Department in Oak Park do more than put out fires. Out of more than 20 stations within the Sacramento Fire Department, the station is the busiest. Year after year, the station has also been ranked as one of the busiest in the nation. During their time at the house, firefighters are on-call to respond to a wide range of calls. Many are legitimate life-threatening emergencies, but a number of them don’t necessarily warrant a 9-1-1 response. A faked seizure, a man unconscious in the bushes covered with ants and foaming at the mouth, a woman who claimed she had been assaulted by six men and a

For residents who care about their local parks, the city’s budget cuts to parks maintenance could mean that volunteering may become a necessity instead of an occasional activity. A few neighborhood groups are now talking to city staffers about how they can volunteer to maintain parks, according to Parks and Recreation Director Jim Combs. In one of its many budget cuts, the city slashed the parks department by $8.3 million for the 2009/2010 fiscal year. Pink slips were sent to 65 workers in the department; they are scheduled to be laid off Thursday. The total number of parks workers to be laid off this week was unclear, but acting city spokeswoman Wendy Klock-Johnson said the layoff figure

A swarm of children took over the Capitol Tuesday to defend education in the face of massive budget cuts.  Ranging in age from eight years old to 18 years old, students from all over California sought to answer the question, "What is the purpose of public schools?" The Children's Rally, coordinated by Sandra Tsing Loh, an author and member of the Burning Moms organization, is a congregation of young students as participatory citizens in the political dialogue of their state legislature. The Burning Moms originated as a group of parents, fathers included, who had frustrations about the education system in California. “I'm a Proposition 13 baby, and my children continue to be affected by

The SCUSD Board of Education voted 5 – 1, with 1 abstention, to drastically reduce summer school programs for the next two years - effective immediately. The decision eliminates all programs for elementary and middle school students, and reduces summer school for high school students. In addition, special education programs will be reduced and adult school programs will either be reduced or converted to a fee based system. The decision will also impact almost 300 district employees, some of whom planned to report to work as early as today. In her opening statements, Interim Superintendent Susan Miller stressed that the budget for this and next fiscal year was balanced as of May 14th, but

As their peers celebrate the last day of school, many Sacramento students will head home facing an uncertain summer. With only a one-day notice, SCUSD called a special Board of Education Meeting to be held on Thursday – the last day of school. The Board will consider a staff suggestion to eliminate summer school programs district wide. Due to budget constraints, enrichment programs have already been stripped from the district’s summer school agenda. Kara Broderick, a first and second grade teacher at David Lubin Elementary, said that teachers were asked “only to recommend students that were below basic or far below basic” grade levels. The Board will decide Thursday whether or not to elim

Carla Tuff rode one of 12 buses that departed Los Angeles at 3 a.m. today to join an estimated 1,500 people protesting statewide HIV service cuts at the Capitol. The "Fight for Your Life" rally was organized by the San Francisco AIDS Foundation along with other HIV and AIDS awareness organizations. Tuff said she was one of 58 other protestors who rode a bus from the Tarzana Treatment Center in Los Angeles, where she has received medical and mental treatment as an HIV-positive patient for the past several years. "If they stop our medications ... I won't be able to raise my kids," Tuff said. Now 44 years old, Tuff said she was 26 and pregnant with her first child when she was diagnosed HI

Elder abuse. Major narcotics. Community prosecution. These are just a few of the key units in the county district attorney’s office that would be eliminated if the office has to make $13.1 million more in cuts to help balance the county’s budget. Sacramento County District Attorney Jan Scully gave the Board of Supervisors a dire outlook Wednesday of how the public would suffer from proposed cuts to the D.A.’s office. The county’s most recent figure for its budget deficit is $180 million, said Kerri Aiello, a county public information officer. “Rest assured, with these kind of cuts, if I have to close a $13.1 million gap, justice is not going to be served in this community,” Scully said

The local firefighters’ union is objecting to city management’s comments about Sacramento's budget crunch and possible layoffs for fire department staff. At the same time, the Downtown Sacramento Partnership and Sacramento’s neighborhood services department both expressed concerns Monday about the potential budget cuts being considered by the city. The proposed 2009/2010 city budget, released Friday, seeks to address a $50 million deficit. The City Council will address the proposed budget at its May 19 meeting. Among other cuts, the budget proposes to lay off 189 city employees. The budget calls for 387 positions to be slashed. Because 198 of those positions are vacant, the city would n

Nearly 100 people stood outside the County Administration Center at 700 H Street on Tuesday at noon, while the County Board of Supervisors Meeting had its lunch break. Consisting of mental health patients, mental health clinicians, and their supporters, the gatherers protested proposed mental health budget cuts being discussed in the meeting. "We have 2,400 clients, and by June 31, we have to cut our number of clients to 1,000; it's kind of hard to let go of all of those mental health patients," said Marilyn Washington, a member of the regional support team for Turning Point Community Programs, a mental health agency. "It's going to cost the city more money, since we are the ones who hel

A march for education will begin at Raley Field March 16 and end at the Capitol, where a crowd of thousands of students, teachers, administrators is expected to recognize the importance of affordable education for all.   Students and teachers are hopeful their voices will be heard. Instructors throughout the Los Rios Community College District are encouraging their students to get out there on Monday at 10 a.m. for the beginning of the march.   “Community colleges are the backbone, especially in a bad economy, for students,” says Sacramento City College political science professor Paul Frank. “If community college students stop being political, they’re going to lose whatever they have or

While riding through the downtown area today I spotted a group of people walking down the street heading toward the plaza. After following them around for a few minutes to investigate, I quickly realized that they were protesters. This small group of 8 was heading for the Holiday Inn Capitol Plaza in downtown Sacramento this morning, chanting “Hey hey, ho ho, budget caps have got to go.” I followed these protestors for a block or so, before they finally stopped in front of the conference room at Holiday Inn. Apparently the legislature was having a meeting in this hotel working on ways to cap California’s budget. There I found out that the protestors were actually part of the SEIU of Cali