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Show Many Cities Cut Budgets As Incomes Drop Off Cities cutting corners in their budgets to counterbalance war-brought war-brought expenses and reduced revenues reve-nues are making the saving chiefly by eliminating public works construction, con-struction, reducing street maintenance mainte-nance and building inspection, and doubling up jobs left vacant by employees em-ployees called into the armed forces. This is the finding of a survey made by the International City Managers' Man-agers' association, which secured reports on wartime economy measures meas-ures .of cities. Eight of the cities reported they are effecting their main reductions by reducing outlays for street and public works maintenance, and at least one other West Palm Beach, Fla. expects to save on street lighting light-ing through air raid precaution dim-outs. dim-outs. Mason City, Iowa, and Ashe-ville, Ashe-ville, N. C, said they were reducing reduc-ing building inspection personnel because be-cause of the drop in construction. Altogether, nine of the cities have cut down personnel by curtailing services or by assigning employees still on the job to take over the work of those on military leave. Such reductions have taken place in Yonkers, Mason City, West Palm Beach, Asheville, Knoxville, Pasadena, Pasa-dena, Watertown, N. Y., Winnetka, 111., and Rumford. Maine. Yonkers' 1942 payroll has 600 fewer employees employ-ees than it had in 1939. Other services curtailed by the cities surveyed include garbage collection, col-lection, police auto patrols, municipal munici-pal advertising, recreation, weed-cutting, weed-cutting, relief and welfare. Two of the cities Sterling, Kan. and Winnetka, Win-netka, 111. reported they are saving sav-ing money by refunding callable bonds. Typical of the cities which have tightened their belts are Asheville and Pasadena. |