L.A. city budget facing hard times

In the hyperbole of local politics, this is the year the Titanic hits the iceberg. Daily News.

After a year of constant adjustments to the $7.2 billion spending plan, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa today is set to release his 2009-10 budget - one that is expected to require thousands of layoffs, cuts in nearly all departments and higher fees for residents.

Mayoral spokesman Matt Szabo said the budget will reflect the difficult choices facing policy makers.

"The mayor has said it: It is all about shared sacrifices," Szabo said.

Los Angeles is not alone, of course, in facing the need for those sacrifices. Many local governments and the state of California are bleeding red ink in the weak economy as they face lowered expectations for revenue and local jobs.