Council wants answers from administration on Youngstown’s budgets

YOUNGSTOWN — City council won’t approve budgets until Dec. 30 to reconcile the city’s expenditures and revenue for this year, and to allocate money for the first three months of next year.

If council doesn’t get the proper answers from the city administration about the budgets, its members could keep the discussion going “until the next morning to get it done,” Councilwoman Carol Rimedio-Righetti, D-4th, chairwoman of the legislative body’s finance committee, said today.

“I don’t think we will be here till the next morning, but we’ll be prepared with questions and the city administration will provide answers,” she added.

Council must vote to reconcile the 2008 budget before Dec. 31.

The city administration is projecting a $3.5 million shortfall for next year.

Rimedio-Righetti also said council needs “more dialogue and more information on the budget.”

Council members have a “standing invitation” from the administration to “understand and review the budget process of the city” with the finance department, but many don’t accept that offer, Mayor Jay Williams said.

For the complete story, read Thursday’s Vindicator or Vindy.com