CLEVELAND — Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb’s first operating budget gained Cleveland City Council approval Monday, which is expected to expand the number of city employees by several hundred.
Bibb’s budget calls for $704 million in day-to-day expenditures, with more than half being allocated to the safety department, which contains the city’s divisions of police, fire and emergency medical services. While the city is only expected to garner $647 million in revenue, the use of federal recovery funds make the budget balanced, Bibb’s office said.
The 2022 city budget calls for a city workforce of 5,038, and increase from 4,220 employees in 2021 and 4,501 in 2020.
Several departments are budgeted for larger increases, including a 44% increase in staffing at the city’s health department.
The budget calls on the number of uniformed police officers to increase from 1,535 in 2020 and 1,402 in 2021 to 1,640 in 2022. The department has challenges in hiring and retaining officers.
The number of uniformed members of the fire division is also slated to increase from 701 in 2020 and 669 in 2021 to 761 in 2022.
One thing complicating the 2022 budget is how the city collects income tax from employees who live outside city limits and are working from home. Two-thirds of the city’s operating revenue comes from income taxes. The budget does not call for a significant decline in income tax revenue.
“Though the long-term impact of COVID-19 on the city’s fiscal health remains uncertain, my administration is committed to doing the work necessary to bring structural balance to the City’s operating budgets in the near future,” said Bibb.
Cleveland’s full budget is available on the city website.
