The Anchorage Assembly passed a $504 million operating budget during it’s Tuesday night meeting, up slightly from last year’s budget of $488 million. Increases are going primarily to pay for a larger police force.
Modest cuts were made across the board to departmental budgets, grant programs and public transportation.
Assembly member Eric Croft summed up a process that’s gone relatively smoothly since the budget was first introduced by the mayor’s administration a few months ago.
“(There are) cuts all over this budget to make up for concentrating on police,” Croft said during member comments. “It does make cuts in every other area except public safety in order to put more cops on the street.”
The budget passed seven to four, with conservative assembly members opposed because they say it grows the size of local government amid a lean fiscal environment.
Zachariah Hughes reports on city & state politics, arts & culture, drugs, and military affairs in Anchorage and South Central Alaska.
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