San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria says the city faces a projected deficit of $258 million

SAN DIEGO — San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said Wednesday that budget cuts are planned after voters rejected a sales tax increase last month.

“Without these additional funds, next year’s budget process will be difficult, but we will use this as an opportunity to rethink how the city operates,” Gloria said.

Gloria was re-elected to a second four-year term last month, but city voters narrowly rejected Measure E. That 1-cent sales tax increase would have raised about $400 million per year.

Now the city has a projected deficit of $258.2 million for the 2026 budget, which begins July 1.

Gloria said the cuts include:

*A hiring freeze except for essential hires.

*Suspension of all non-essential overtime.

*Pausing non-essential expenses such as travel and training expenses.

*Stopping the revitalization process of the community center.

*Exploring monetization opportunities
municipal facilities such as the Golden Hall and the adjacent parking garage.

The cuts come after Team 10 discovered that the city has been on a hiring boom since the start of Gloria’s first term.

Team 10 found that under Gloria, the number of city employees increased from nearly 12,000 to nearly 13,300. And in recent years, most city employees have received big raises.

The mayor on Wednesday defended all the additional staff but said some changes may be needed.

“There may be a direct impact on employees,” the mayor said. “We’re still trying to figure out what that would look like.”

He added that the city of San Diego has become an “employer of choice” and filling vacancies has allowed city workers to repair streetlights, pave streets and respond to emergency calls for residents.

The city was able to add these positions and raise salaries as revenue continued to increase during Gloria’s first term.

This is expected to continue at around 3 percent in the next fiscal year, but spending is expected to grow at a faster rate.

Therefore, there is a structural deficit of $258 million.

But a city spokeswoman said there could be some new pots of money, including an additional $70 million, if the city begins collecting revenue from trash collection.

Gloria encouraged the community to participate in the budget process, which begins Dec. 11 with the city’s Budget Committee.