Madison’s financial committee will consider 38 amendments to Mayor Paul Soglin’s proposed $266.4 million operating budget for 2013 at its meeting Monday.
Among the proposed amendments is a suggestion to remove $25,000 from the proposed Helping Hands Homeward program and allocate the funds for a year-round, county-run day shelter. An alternate amendment proposes adding the money to the general Community Services funds.
Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said the day shelter would be a better option for the city economically than the Helping Hands Homeward initiative, which is a program supported by Soglin that would provide travel money to homeless people who want to leave Madison.
“Given [the city’s] scarce resources, it would be a more productive use of money to fund a day shelter than one-way bus tickets out of town,” Verveer said.
Another controversial amendment proposed by city alders includes restoring $900,000 in funding for the Overture Center.
A portion of the funds would be transferred from premiums—up-front cash the city receives from banks—which Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, said some alders say is poor budgeting practice because the premium amount changes from year to year.
Due to the controversial nature of these amendments, Soglin could decide to veto the entire proposed budget, according to Resnick.
If that is the case, the city Council would have to reconvene in a special session to either override the veto or come to an agreement with the mayor over the proposed amendments, according to Resnick.
Madison’s city Council will make a decision on the proposed operating and capital budget Nov. 13.
