The Raleigh City Council will hold a virtual meeting at 1 p.m. tomorrow to discuss how to handle a projected $36 million revenue shortfall for the 2021 budget.
As Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin told the INDY last week, Raleigh has taken a major hit during the coronavirus shutdown, with revenues slashed from the sales tax due to business closures. To deal with the projected shortfall in revenue, the city will need to cut up to 6 percent of its current operating budget, according to a memo from the city’s budget and finance teams.
City officials have already implemented a hiring freeze for “non-mission critical positions” and ceased all travel expenses outside of Wake County.
But more drastic cuts will be necessary for the council to pass a working budget by June without any lay offs.
The council will also discuss holding virtual community meetings on new developments and the allocation of $1 million to help small businesses.
City staff will finalize a draft budget on May 19.
The meeting will kick off at 1 p.m. Public comment will not be permitted. You can watch the meeting live on the city’s website or YouTube channel.
Read the full memo from Finance here:
Contact Raleigh editor Leigh Tauss at ltauss@indyweek.com.
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