How Denver City Council wants to change Mayor Johnston's budget
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Funding eviction prevention, after-school programs and the Denver Basic Income Project are among the top ways the Denver City Council wants to tweak the city's 2025 budget.
Why it matters: The proposals reflect the council's priorities.
Context: The 22 proposals equate to roughly $29 million, a fraction of the $1.76 billion in discretionary spending for 2025 proposed in a budget draft released last month by Mayor Mike Johnston.
- While the mayor proposed the city's spending plan, the council can make changes before it's finalized.
Between the lines: Most changes (20) are backed by a council supermajority, meaning nine or more of its 13 members support the amendments — enough to override a mayoral veto — and are more likely to pass.
- Two proposals only have a simple majority, including $2.75 million to acquire land for safe parking for people living in RVs, per the council's budget recommendation letter released last Friday.
State of play: Next year's proposed budget has the smallest growth rate in 14 years; similarly, the council's proposals are far less than last year's, which was nearly $80 million.
Zoom in: The largest proposed funding change is allocating $5.5 million to the Office of Children's Affairs for "comprehensive" out-of-school programs for 5,000 elementary and middle school students.
- That money would be used to pay for activities to improve children's physical well-being and mental health.
Other major spending suggestions include:
- $5 million in additional spending for the rental and utility assistance program.
- $3 million to help the city's Newcomer Program reevaluate how it will provide services to migrants.
- $2.5 million for a program seeking to make school routes safer for children.
- $1.7 million for Vision Zero, which seeks to reduce traffic deaths.
The intrigue: The council wants to spend $2.5 million for the Denver Basic Income project after Johnston's budget cut its funding, jeopardizing the program's future.
- DBI has given more than 800 people experiencing homelessness unconditional cash payments since its 2021 launch. It was initially paid for by city money, pandemic aid and charitable foundations.
What they're saying: "This program has found significant improvement in housing outcomes," reads the council's letter supporting further funding of the income project.
- Johnston told the Denver Post data from the program shows "the net impact on this as a housing strategy" isn't clear yet.
What's next: Johnston's administration will respond to the changes on Friday, his staff tells Axios Denver.