Schools escape the ax in tentative budget deal

Looks like the City Council made good on its promise not to approve a budget that includes cuts to schools — late last night, the council and the mayor tentatively agreed on a budget that includes $129 million the council is allocating to schools to make up for the DOE’s planned cuts.

Centrally, the DOE will accept a small budget cut, as will most other city agencies. Unfortunately for other New Yorkers, restoring school budgets forced the council to cut some of the other services it funds, including senior centers and workforce and youth development programs. And Mayor Bloomberg also warns that if the city’s economic picture continues to deteriorate, city agencies — presumably, including schools — could see their budgets reduced downward during the year. When that happened this spring, schools were forced to cut programs and services midyear, which can be more disruptive than planning ahead for lean times.