Policy Update: The “Nobody’s Crazy Budget” Passed

by Zac Unger, City Council District 1

Just when you think you’ve figured out what to do with last two billion dollars, it’s time to do it all over again. I remember points in my life when June meant family trips in the minivan, spring river rafting, and eating watermelon over the sink. But now, if this is June, then it must be budget season! Oakland operates on a two-year budget cycle and, in the even years we do what’s called a “mid-cycle adjustment,” where we make corrections based on the previous year’s actual revenues and expenditures as opposed to what we’d predicted. It’s an opportunity to check in, figure out what’s working, and change things up.

            Last year I told you that we’d come up with the “Nobody’s Happy Budget.” That’s because we were operating with a significant deficit and we had to get our house in order, primarily by cutting everywhere and making everyone a little bit sad. This year we’ve got an actual surplus, and I’m calling it the “Nobody’s Crazy Budget,” because we resisted the temptation to light that money on fire and instead we presented a budget adjustment that is accountable, responsible, and sane.

            The mayor proposes the base budget, and then the council budget team, of which I was a member, proposes amendments. Council budgets in recent memory haven’t always been models of fiscal responsibility and I was determined to start getting our house in order. Here’s what our council amendments did on the good government front:

We added no new positions to the general fund.

We used no one-time revenues for ongoing expenses.

We brought four ballot measures out of “fiscal emergency” status and into compliance with voter-approved mandates.

Our single biggest line-item expenditure went towards paying down long-term debt obligations.

And even with all of that sweet, sweet moderation, we were able to do a lot of good things with our amendments. In case it’s been too long since I’ve given you a nice list, here’s what we affirmatively budgeted for:

Added 4 million dollars for park maintenance, upgrades, and vegetation management.

Budgeted for two new fire engines and equipment for garbage abatement crews.

Added 2.5 million for safe parking spots and hotel vouchers to keep people off the streets.

Moved forward 50 million in already approved bonds to keep our affordable housing pipeline humming.

Added money for graffiti abatement, street light fixes, traffic calming measures, slightly extended hours at the senior center, and a host of other quality-of-life initiatives. 

Every budget is a series of reality checks, tradeoffs, and disappointments. Fun, huh? We can’t do everything we’d like to do. And while we’ve successfully closed the budget, we’re still in negotiations with every single city employee. Despite some erroneous information that has been circulating on the internet, our non-safety employees received no raises last year. Zero percent, even as inflation has impacted us all. Because of this we continue to lose dedicated, talented workers to our neighboring cities. Part of the reason we didn’t spend our entire surplus is due to these ongoing talks. I am committed to bargaining in good faith with both our sworn and non-sworn employees to get them a compensation package that is—like our budget—accountable, responsible, and sane.

I’ve mentioned this before, but I want to highlight again how this council/mayor combo is much more functional than some previous lineups we’ve had. There are strong disagreements at times, but there are no defined blocs and we all work hard to keep our differences at the policy level rather than devolving into the kind of personal attacks that can send a city down a rabbit hole of dysfunction. Obviously, there is an enormous amount of work to be done, but with a collegial group of electeds and some breathing room on the budget, I’m feeling optimistic about where things are headed in Oakland. Maybe June can still be a fun month after all!