Yoon Rejects Menino’s Budget
Outlines New Approach to Open and Accountable Budgeting

June 23, 2009

BOSTON – City Councilor-at-Large and mayoral candidate Sam Yoon announced today that he will oppose Mayor Menino’s proposed $2.45 billion budget at tomorrow’s City Council’s budget vote.

“The mayor could have used this crisis as an opportunity to create fundamental changes that would move our city into the 21st Century,” said Yoon. “Instead, we have a budget that fails to address savings across all departments and fails to open up the biggest untapped resource in our City’s budget – the BRA.”

In March, Yoon held a hearing to examine a City report that identified over $74 million in reforms to the City budget. This year’s budget realizes virtually none of those savings- including $24 million from stricter overtime management, $22 million from fixing the sick and injured payroll system, and $3 million from the removal of fire signal boxes, a technology made obsolete by 911. Yoon has also called for new Zipcar technology that could save money by reducing the size of the City’s cars and vans by promoting vehicle sharing.

The budget also does not include potential revenue kept within the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA). The BRA is a independent agency that manages billions of dollars of real estate, but the money from development, leases, and sales does not go back into Boston’s budget. Last week, Yoon proposed eliminating the BRA and bringing development authority under Boston’s control.

Yoon has voted against the previous three budgets, criticizing its closed-door process and lack of funding for youth violence prevention.

“We need an open and accountable process for writing the budget,” said Yoon. “Other cities take budgeting much more seriously. Bostonians should be able to voice priorities and concerns before the budget is written, and we should post the budget online in a searchable format.”