The Memphis City Council began the process of amending the city’s 2015 budget Tuesday with some resolutions to add $1.5 million for rape kit testing, cutting the Memphis Gun Down program, possibly adding $2 million the summer jobs program for youths, and maybe giving $25,000 to the Frayser and Raleigh neighborhoods for Christmas lights.
Officials from Memphis Mayor A C Wharton’s administration presented a progress report on the city’s first financial quarter of the 2015 budget year to council members Tuesday. Revenues were 2 percent (or about $12 million) ahead of budget so far and expenses were on target.
But the officials said the budget could look much different as the dust settles on the recently closed enrollment period for health care benefits for city workers. Those costs could be much higher than they expected but hoped that they could be “offset by positives in the rest of the budget.”
Wharton asked council members to spend some of the excess funds on continuing or expanding current programs.
Those programs included the Youth Ambassador program, a year-round enrichment program for students in grades 10, 11, and 12; the Memphis Gun Down program, which connects with violent teens to reduce gun violence in Memphis; and the mayor’s Blueprint for Prosperity, which seeks to reduce the city’s poverty rate by 10 percent in 10 years.
The extra $1.25 million for the Youth Ambassador program was cut in a resolution put forth in a motion by council chairman Jim Strickland. Instead, that money will go towards the city’s effort in testing its backlog go sexual assault kits.
“First, (council member Wanda Halbert) has a resolution for $2 million for the summer youth program, which I think is far more beneficial than the Youth Ambassador program,” Strickland said. “Secondly, I want to remind everybody that the mayor’s budget has zero dollars for rape kit testing. Zero. We added $1.5 million last week and I hope we finalize that tonight but that still leaves a $1.7 million deficit. This is a better use of the money.”
The city’s chief administrative officer, George Little, argued that the specific labs that can do rape kit testing are now at full capacity and that the money could not be spent to test more kits now.
Halbert argued that testing the kits is supposed to be the state’s responsibility and that the city should not be paying any money to test the kits.
“If we have to sue the state, let’s sue the state,” Halbert said. “It is not fair that we should be spending our money on something they are responsible for.”
The committee will sent Strickland’s resolution to the full council with a favorable recommendation. The first vote on the matter will be taken this evening.
The Memphis Gun Down program was funded for two years by a Bloomberg grant that began in 2012. The mayor’s administration asked the city council for $250,000 to keep the program going. That figure included salaries for three employees to run the program.
Council member Harold Collins said the program seemed much like the Youth Ambassadors program and called to cut at least one employee from Gun Down in the budget. The committee approved his resolution to cut $62,200 form the Gun Down budget and, presumably, one employee from the program. That resolution will also get a council vote this evening.
The mayor’s Blueprint for Prosperity was rolled out earlier this year. The plan s hoped to have an annual anti-poverty benefit of about $218 million through programs that help poor people get jobs and others to put money directly into their pockets.
Council member Janis Fullilove said she did not know what the project was and asked for administration officials to bring the council more information on it in two weeks.
Council member Lee Harris added an item to the budget, one that got a chuckle from members of the Wharton administration.
“Folks int he neighborhoods of Raleigh and Frayser have been fighting seriously for the last seven years to have the city partner with them in their holiday parade,” Harris said.
His resolution would add $25,000 to the city’s budget for holiday lights for the communities’ holiday parade. Harris said the funds could come from a portion of the unused funds from a rejected plan to build a foot bridge across Poplar Avenue for the International Paper headquarters there.
Halbert added she would also like $25,000 for holiday lights for her district as well. That district includes the area roughly between the airport and the Fairgrounds.
The issue will come before the council during their meeting this evening and, like the other resolutions, will come before them again in two weeks.
Larry Kuzniewski 
