March 25, 2010 – Segment 1

First, we bring you another installment of Your Money Matters with Herman Williams, Chairman of the Board of MECU, and Bert Hash, President and Chief Executive Officer of MECU.

Then:

Firing 600 city workers.  Shutting down seven fire companies.  Pools and rec centers closed.  No Fourth of July fireworks.  These are just some of the drastic measure contained in the preliminary budget proposals released yesterday by Mayor Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake’s administration.  The proposals are just a start, and Mayor Rawlings-Blake is the first to admit that some of the cuts are unacceptable.  Our panel discusses the controversial proposals and what Baltimore can do to avoid the cuts and still fill our $121 million budget shortfall.

Our guests were:

The Honorable Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Mayor of Baltimore

Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke, representative of Baltimore’s 14th City Council District

Otis Rolley, senior manager at Urban Policy Development, co-founder of Center Maryland, and former Chief of Staff to former Mayor Sheila Dixon

Julie Scharper, city hall reporter for the Baltimore Sun