Jim Waring, in the conservative minority on Phoenix City Council, views this year’s city budget as the first worth voting for in his 13 years on council.
Waring said he is breaking from tradition ahead of last week’s budget vote, because the city has kept the per resident spending basically steady since 2008 despite the Great Recession, the coronavirus pandemic and high inflation in recent years. The city also has 1,200 fewer staffers since 2008 despite the population growing by more than 162,000 in that time, according to the U.S. Census.
Accounting for inflation, the city’s per capita costs are only $4 higher than what they were in 2008, said Budget and Research Director Amber Williamson.
