Seattle Mayor's Proposed $7 Million Cut to Firefighter Overtime Sparks Budget Fight
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson's proposed 2027 budget would cut firefighter overtime by $7 million, drawing sharp debate in the City Council. Council President Dan Strauss has offered a counter-proposal to restore and increase firefighter overtime funding, warning the cut could slow emergency responses in outlying neighborhoods served by a single fire crew. The city says the overtime reduction is one of the spending restraints needed to meet its legal balanced-budget requirement and to move away from past budget practices. The council points to a September incident as evidence of the risk: a 57-year-old man collapsed in Magnolia's Discovery Park, and Engine 41 arrived within four minutes — response speed can be a matter of life and death. The budget talks also involve gender-based violence programs and members' priority items; the council has held several public hearings, and over the next two weeks departments covering public safety, libraries, housing, arts, civil rights, land use, parks, transportation and homelessness will present in turn. A final budget is expected within weeks.
(Source: Focal News)
Source: Focal News
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：西雅图市景。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons，授权见图页。 / Photo: Seattle. Source: Wikimedia Commons (license on file page).
