Long Beach is moving to close a $58.2 million structural deficit with a proposed budget that would eliminate 483 city positions — 263 of them currently filled — while restoring roughly 70 jobs through redirected and outside funding, City Manager Thomas Modica and Mayor Rex Richardson said earlier this month.
During a special City Council meeting Aug. 4, Modica framed the plan as necessary cuts after five years without reductions, telling the council city management would “recommend fully solving that deficit this year and also rebuilding our reserves at the same time,” he said.
Inflationary cost increases and the loss of about $300 million in support from the federal government, in addition to five years with no reductions, are the main reasons for the deficit, according to Modica.
The city manager’s proposal, which aims to help rectify the budget with about $56 million in cuts that he called “balancing solutions,” drew emotional public testimony from employees and union representatives who warned the cuts would gut essential services.
The most contested reductions target public safety agencies. The proposed budget eliminates the engine at Fire Station 14 while keeping the station open, closing another engine on a rotating basis, and cutting 17 vacant police patrol officer positions without reducing beats.
Richardson said he would use port funding to restore 12 Fire Department positions and eliminate the rotating closure, along with restoring four patrol positions and two quality-of-life officers.
Councilwoman Kristina Duggan noted that emergency response times have already slowed, and Southeast Long Beach faces growing demand from an AES battery storage expansion expected to open by the end of 2027.
“When someone calls 911, the city needs to be able to respond in a timely manner,” she said, asking staff to return with an alternative funding strategy to keep The engine at Station 14 operating.
The Health and Human Services Department — one of only three city-run health departments in California — would absorb a $4.2 million cut and 47 position eliminations, Modica said.
Richardson said Measure ER, a county measure that will provide roughly $7 million in sales tax dollars to Pasadena and Long Beach for their health departments, would restore 12 positions and add 38 new roles in Long Beach.
Library and parks services also face reductions, including cutting neighborhood libraries from six to five days of service and eliminating programming at Chavez Park and the Homeland Cultural Center.
Richardson recommended restoring the Be Safe summer program to three hours and preserving funding for Rancho Los Alamitos, Rancho Los Cerritos and the El Dorado Nature Center.
Public commenters, including union representatives and city employees, described the human toll of pending job cuts.
One speaker urged the council to “measure twice, cut once,” warning that once positions are gone, “once these people and their experience are gone, you may find that what you cut was far more valuable than what you saved.”.
The city’s charter requires the council to adopt the fiscal year 2027 budget no later than Sept. 15.
Information on the budget approval process is on the city’s website.
The AI platform Civilio assisted this report.
