News Release
For Release: Monday, January 3, 2011
Contact: Frank Baraff 914-469-3775

Mayor Eldridge Hawkins, Jr. to hold Public Forum on Municipal Budget on
Tuesday, January 11th 6:30. Council Chamber, City Hall. 29 North Day Street.
Budget to be formally introduced at the January 18th City Council meeting.

Statement by Mayor Eldridge Hawkins, Jr.

“On Tuesday, January 11th, together with the directors of our city departments, I will be holding a public public forum on Orange’s budget for the current fiscal year.  While we will focus on the budget, we will answer questions about any issue affecting our city. The budget will be introduced to the City Council at their meeting on January 18th, the first meeting after the January 7th deadline for possible layoffs.

I invite all citizens and taxpayers to attend and participate. I invite you to hear how this budget will cut spending and add revenues in order to cope with Governor Christie’s $3 million cut in state aid to Orange. The directors will discuss the strategies of their departments to operate with fewer employees as well as the service changes and reductions forced by the state cuts. We have been forced to reduce municipal employment in a national financial crisis when most other governments and businesses across America have also been forced to downsize.

You will be able to ask questions, receive answers, and express your opinions. If you are unable to attend, I invite you to watch the forum on Channel 35. Prior to the forum, a summary of the proposed budget will be posted on our website.

Ever since last March when Governor Christie announced his cuts in state aid, Orange residents have been asking me to fight to prevent a huge increase in our property taxes. I have heard their voices. That’s why my administration did not introduce a budget earlier. We refused to introduce a budget with a twenty percent tax increase, and we wanted to do everything possible to reduce the need for layoffs. Layoffs may be necessary to close our budget gap, but before they are implemented, I still want to give our unions every opportunity to agree to salary, work rule, pension and benefit changes that could reduce our labor costs without costing jobs.

The deadline for avoiding layoffs is now upon us: This Friday, January 7th. We are still in negotiations with our unions for givebacks to minimize layoffs. We are prepared to negotiate up until the very moment that layoffs take effect on January 7th. The new budget, when introduced, will reflect the outcome of those negotiations.

Once the budget is introduced, I will work diligently with the Council, the Citizens Budget Advisory Committee and others to continue to do everything possible to protect our homeowners and businesses from a devastating tax increase in the midst of this terrible recession and to minimize service reductions.”