City Hall is under a self-imposed hiring freeze for 90 days because city government will spend $1 million or so more than it takes in if something doesn’t change in the four months left in this fiscal year.

The budget problem isn’t because the money’s not coming in, according to a quarterly financial report presented to City Council today (Tuesday, April 22, 2008).

No, from nearly every source that the city gets money, it’s getting more money than City Manager Joyce Wilson and the City Council budgeted last fall.

· Property and sales tax revenues, budgeted at $187.2 million, are expected to be $1.3 million over budget, including $831,202 from property taxes.

· Charges for services, from building permits to ambulance rides, were projected at $14.3 million but are coming in $2 million over that.

· Municipal Court fines, which the city has been overestimating in recent years, were budgeted at $13 million but drivers caught speeding, without proof of insurance or parking by an expired meter look as though they will pay $1.8 million more.

· Franchise tax income from El Paso Electric, Texas Gas Service and others using city rights-of-way may come in $182,502 over the $40.8 million budgeted.

But what should be great news for City Hall isn’t good enough because the city’s spending is $2.5 million over the $304 million general fund budget.

Assistant City Manager Bill Studer told the council that a 90-day hiring freeze is the right medicine for the problem and that it began a month ago.

Why is the city over budget?

Mostly because overtime in public safety departments: $2.9 million in the Fire Department and $2.7 million for the police, plus $420,787 in streets.

Some of those cost overruns are due to higher gasoline prices.

South-West Rep. Beto O’Rourke asked when the benefit of paying overtime is outweighed by the need to hire new more police officers or firefighters.

Studer didn’t answer the question directly, but did say the city is trying to fill 70 seats in an upcoming academy for firefighter recruits.

In the absence of the three council members who tend to sweat over budget details – Northeast Rep. Melina Castro, Eastside Rep. Rachel Quintana and East Valley Rep. Eddie Holguin – Tuesday’s meeting ended in near record time.

The three were at the three-day Young Elected Officials Conference at the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Ark., sponsored by the liberal People for the American Way.

The conference for elected officials under the age of 35 is described as “The largest gathering of young progressive elected leaders in the country. More than 150 young elected officials will share policy initiatives and best practices, network, and develop and enhance critical skills.”

“Progressive” is a term that O’Rourke, West Central Rep. Susie Byrd, Eastridge/Mid-Valley Rep. Steve Ortega and Westside Rep. Ann Lilly have always used to describe themselves and the direction in which they want to take El Paso.

But Holguin, a member of the Young Elected Officials Network for more than two years, said he would call himself a progressive and define the term differently than the council majority.

“I consider them Borderland Republicans,” Holguin said.

Told of Holguin’s comment, Ortega said, “Borderland Republicans?

“I’m not going respond to that. It’s interesting. I’ve never been described as a Republican in my life.”

[Editor’s note: Newspaper Tree checked back with Holguin about whether the term “borderland Republicans” was correct and he said the term he used was “borderline Republicans.”]