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Council hearings for Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb's budget proposal begin Tuesday

Bibb's proposed $1.9 billion budget includes nearly $711 million in General Fund spending. The budget must be approved by Cleveland City Council by April 1.

CLEVELAND — Two weeks after Mayor Justin Bibb released his 2023 budget proposal, members of his administration will go before Cleveland City Council for a series of hearings starting on Tuesday.

The proposed $1.9 billion budget includes nearly $711 million in General Fund spending. Unlike last year, Bibb plans to achieve a structurally balanced budget that would give the city a $225,000 surplus. Most notably, Bibb's budget calls for the elimination of more than 250 vacant positions in city departments, including 140 unfilled division of police jobs.

During the next two weeks, each of the city's departments will have a session in front of Cleveland City Council to review its accomplishments in 2022 and discuss the proposed 2023 budget.

On Wednesday, the council will hear from the Cleveland Department of Public Safety, which will include the Cleveland Division of Police, the Cleveland Division of Fire, Animal Care & Control, and Emergency Medical Services (EMS). (The 2022 annual reports for each department is linked)

You can see the full schedule of hearings here.

 "Over the last year, we have made significant progress and investments in our residents, technology and infrastructure," Bibb wrote in a letter to city council and Cleveland residents in his budget estimate. "In 2022, we built a foundation together that will support big things to come in 2023 and beyond."

Bibb added that his administration is targeting several initiatives for 2023, including revitalizing the city's east side neighborhoods, developing the lakefront, public safety, and choosing the next CEO of the Cleveland Metropolitan School District after Eric Gordon departs in June. 

The budget must be approved by Cleveland City Council by April 1.

Signal Cleveland Managing Editor and 3News Contributor Mark Naymik talked more about the upcoming budget discussions with Russ Mitchell during Monday's What's Now. Watch below:

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