Boston City Council Hears Public Testimony on FY25 Budget Before Amendment Sessions

BOSTON — May 28, 2024 — Boston City Council budget hearing draws dozens demanding youth jobs funding and police overtime cuts. The Committee on Ways and Means, chaired by Councilor Brian Worrell with Vice Chair Enrique J. Pepén and five other councilors present, held a public testimony session Tuesday on Mayor Michelle Wu's proposed FY25 budget covering docket numbers 0670 through 0678. Youth advocates affiliated with Youth Justice and Power Union demanded the full Council amend the mayor's budget to allocate $37.6 million for year-round youth jobs — a $16 million increase — and raise youth pay rates from $15 an hour to between $18 and $24 depending on age, funded in part by redirecting the mayor's proposed $50 million increase to the Boston Police Department. Angie Lu of the Asian Community Development Corporation urged the Council to restore $1 million in capital funding for a permanent open-space plaza at Phillips Square in Chinatown, noting the neighborhood has just 2 acres of open space per 1,000 residents versus nearly 8 citywide. Michael Kane of the Mass Alliance of HUD Tenants asked councilors to add $5 million to the city rent subsidy program, calling it "an accounting error" in a $3.6 billion budget.