Chief analyst for Los Angeles City Council calls for 1,000 more job cuts

May 11, 2010 | 1:35 pm

The budget roller coaster at Los Angeles City Hall took another sharp turn on Tuesday, with the City Council’s top policy analyst calling for the elimination of 1,000 jobs on top of the 761 targeted by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa in his proposed annual budget.

Chief Legislative Analyst Gerry Miller said the additional positions would need to disappear if the council decides that it cannot rely on parking revenue included in Villaraigosa’s budget.

Public employee union leaders have been lobbying against the plan to eliminate 761 jobs, some of which could disappear through layoffs. But because of labor contracts renegotiated last year, if any member of the Coalition of L.A. City Unions is laid off, the city would need to provide $32.3 million worth of raises to its remaining members next year.


Villaraigosa’s plan, which covers the fiscal year starting July 1, called for the city to lease 10 parking garages and borrow against future parking meter money. Proceeds from those initiatives would replenish the city’s emergency reserve and send $53 million into the city’s general fund, which pays for basic services such as parks and public safety, the plan said.

Some council members have already decided not to include the parking money because no lease agreements have yet been obtained. “My vote will be based on money we have in hand right now, not on speculative revenues that have not yet been collected,â€