The 2024 General Fund budget hearings, where Cleveland City Council members discussed how the city should spend about $778 million of public money, came and went in the blink of an eye – at least compared to recent years.
Today, council and Mayor Justin Bibb’s administration are aiming to iron out any changes to the proposed budget. That could tee it up for its second of three required readings at tonight’s City Council meeting. (Learn more about the budget process here.)
Cleveland Documenters and Signal Staff followed along for all 30-odd hours of budget hearings. As budget watch continues, take a look at some additional items Documenters noted in their recent coverage. (Missed the live budget coverage? Catch up here.)
Legal Aid seeks more money for Right to Counsel program
The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland is asking the city to boost funding for its Right to Counsel program. In budget hearings, Cleveland Chief Finance Officer Ahmed Abonamah noted that $500,000 is earmarked for the program, which provides free legal services to some residents facing eviction.
At a Feb. 26 Cleveland City Council meeting, Legal Aid reps asked council to boost the funding to $750,000 for 2024. They told council members:
- Legal Aid serves families and individuals who are at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines (currently a household income of $62,400 for a family of four, according to a presentation)
- More than 5,000 Clevelanders used the Right to Counsel program in 2023 across 1,470 housing cases
- The $750,000 request is 20% of the program’s budget
City Council made legal representation in eviction hearings a right in 2019.
Documenters Dan McLaughlin and Rosie Palfy have more on the Legal Aid request and presentation. Documenter Emma Sedlak has more on the 2024 General Fund budget hearings.
A backlog of Cleveland tree maintenance
Cleveland’s Urban Forestry unit needs a consistent funding source. That was the word from some council members during 2024 General Fund budget hearings.
The unit, which operates within the Division of Park Maintenance, is responsible for maintaining trees in the public right of way, such as the tree lawn.
Council Member Kevin Bishop asked why the city had pruned and planted fewer trees and ground fewer stumps last year compared to 2022. Abonamah pointed to a backlog of work orders and insufficient funding.
At a January meeting of the Cleveland Urban Forestry Commission, Council Member Jenny Spencer, who sits on the commission, noted a nearly $3 million backlog of complaint-driven work orders for tree maintenance.
In the 2024 budget hearings, Council Member Charles Slife echoed calls from Spencer in January to find different ways to fund Urban Forestry. He said the unit has been “chronically underfunded” and suggested it become its own division.
The overall proposed 2024 budget for Park Maintenance, which also works on the city’s parks, cemeteries, gardens and vacant lots, is about $19.9 million.
Documenter Carolyn Cooper has more on the 2024 budget hearings.
Cleveland paint program pain points
Cleveland City Council briefly revisited a topic from past General Fund budget hearings: Struggles with the city’s Exterior Paint Program.
The city re-launched the program in October 2019. It covered the cost of paint and supplies to help residents remove lead paint from the outside of their homes and apply a fresh coat.
But across 2020 and 2021, just 36% of approved applicants finished re-painting their homes. Some applicants told Cleveland Documenters that the actual painting or the cost of hiring painters were barriers to success.
In 2022 budget hearings, then-new Director of Community Development Alyssa Hernandez said she was exploring options to fill in program gaps. In May 2022, City Council approved changes to the program, including covering the cost of labor for some applicants.
But when the 2023 budget hearings rolled around, council learned that not much had improved. Council Member Rebecca Maurer criticized the program for repainting only 78 homes out of 286 approved applicants in 2022, or about 27%.
And in this year’s hearings, council learned the total number of housing units painted dropped from 78 in 2022 to 70 in 2023. Two of the 70 completed housing units received city support for labor, according to Abonamah.
Council Member Joe Jones asked if funding is the issue. Abonamah said it is not.
The budget for each year of the program typically hovers slightly above $500,000. The city often adds to that amount with unspent money from previous program years.
In December 2023, City Council upped the maximum amount the city could spend on the program to about $2.1 million.
Documenter Emma Sedlak has more on the 2024 General Fund budget hearings. Documenters Xavier Yozwiak and Keith Yurgionas have more on the program changes made in 2022.
‘No clear path’ to less restricted funding for Cleveland neighborhood projects
Council Member Jones also kicked the tires on another discussion from the past: How to get more out of federal Community Development Block Grant dollars (CDBG).
The money, which will be discussed in separate hearings, has strict restrictions. Community development corporations (CDCs), nonprofits that provide a variety of services for Cleveland neighborhoods, rely on CDBG money for much of their funding. Some council members believe the restrictions on the money limit what CDCs can do.
In March 2023, representatives from Cleveland Neighborhood Progress told council members that CDCs have 14 mission-critical functions. Only three of them are CDBG-eligible:
- Business technical assistance
- Home repair
- Rehabilitation
In the 2024 budget hearings, Jones asked if CDBG money could be swapped with General Fund dollars, thus freeing the money up for more uses. Abonamah said there’s “no clear path” to making that happen.
Documenter Emma Sedlak has more on the 2024 General Fund budget hearings. Documenters Von Farowe, Karima McCree-Wilson, and Rosie Palfy have more on that March 2023 discussion.
We’re not sure when City Council will hold CDBG hearings, but in the meantime, check out this CDBG video explainer by Documenters Jenna Thomas and Jack Brancatelli.
Find all Documenters coverage of Cleveland’s 2024 General Fund budget hearings on Documenters.org.
Suggested Reading
City Council and Mayor Justin Bibb to hash out changes to Cleveland’s budget
After Cleveland City Council members review the budget for each city department, members can suggest changes to the the mayor’s proposal.