Mayor Rybak releases plan if state aid to Mpls. is cut

The city of Minneapolis is planning more budget cuts if the state trims local government aid.

Mayor R.T. Rybak released a plan Thursday that would cut city spending by $18 million. Rybak says the cuts include delaying payments on pension debt.

"I think the most significant consequence would be that the work we've been doing over the past few years to fill the potholes and maintain our infrastructure would be set back," Rybak said.

Minneapolis and hundreds of other cities have had their state aid payments trimmed, as the state has coped with recurring budget problems. The League of Minnesota Cities predicts the next governor and state lawmakers will once again slash local government aid, as they try to erase a projected $5.8 billion budget deficit.

Besides a $4 million trim in Minneapolis street maintenance, Rybak proposed a $6.1 million delayed payment on pension debt.

Rybak said if the cuts aren't enough to fill the gap created by lower LGA payments, he will consider an increase of 1 percentage point in the property-tax levy. That increase would raise roughly $2.6 million.

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