Your Budget, Your Government.  Help Us Shape It!
 
With the recent release of budget proposals from the Mayor and City Manager, we will be considering significant changes to the structure of your local government leading up to adoption in mid-September.
 
Proposed changes include consolidation of the LBPD South & West Divisions, reductions of Police staffing for special units such as gang enforcement, youth and senior programs, sidewalk repair and tree trimming, programming and hours at the Main Library and conversion of six branch libraries (including Alamitos Branch) to "self-service" facilities with full access to the library but less professional librarian assistance at branch libraries.
 
For a complete list of budget proposals from the Mayor and City Manager as well as a schedule of upcoming City Council budget meetings, please click here.
 
As a member of the Budget Oversight Committee since my first term on the Council, I have been and will continue to be committed to preserving core services that contribute to our quality of life.  However, with such important decisions being made to the manner in which government operates and public services are delivered, I want to hear from more Second District residents and businesses.  Therefore, I am hosting two Budget Forums in the Second District and asking the City Manager, Chief of Police, financial management and other city staff to present their proposal and discuss the impacts to the community.
 
 Join us at one of the following meetings:
 
SECOND DISTRICT BUDGET FORUM
Thursday, August 16, 2012
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Renaissance Hotel
Naples Ballroom
111 E. Ocean Blvd.
 
SECOND DISTRICT BUDGET FORUM
Thursday, August 30, 2012
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Bixby Park Community Center
130 Cherry Ave.
 
I am proud to say that every resident and business association in the Second District have signed on to help me host the budget forums and spread the word.  They include the Downtown Long Beach Associates, Bluff Heights Neighborhood Association, Promenade Area Residents Association, Ocean Residents Community Association, North Alamitos Beach Association, On Broadway, 4th Street Business Association, Rose Park Neighborhood Association, Craftsman Village Historic District, East Village Association, AOC7 and Alamitos Beach Neighborhood Association.

Making Government More Efficient
We have done a great deal already over the last nine years to make government more efficient and keep Long Beach financially sound during this historic downturn in the economy, including:
 
$209 million in deficit solutions adopted
857 positions eliminated
Reducing 25% of the workforce and 28% of management
Consolidation of departments, bureaus, and divisions
Increased cost recovery through fees and charges
More efficient service delivery
Employees contributing more to their health/retirement cost
  
Long Beach Budget Challenge
 
The City has also launched the Long Beach Budget Challenge, an interactive online simulation for residents to better understand the complexities and trade-offs involved in the budget process.
 
The Budget Challenge is designed to give residents a general perspective of the budget process and the public policy challenges involved in balancing a budget, as well as help to understand how different preferences impact other service areas. The choices provided in the Budget Challenge are illustrative and broadly reflect the types of services that may be impacted in the effort to balance the Fiscal Year 2013 Budget. Participants will be able to see how their choices compare to those of other participants. The cumulative results of the Budget Challenge will be reviewed as part of the budget development process. However, the results should not be considered to be representative of the public at large since the Budget Challenge is not a formal survey
 
Take the Budget Challenge by clicking here budget challenge, or visit our website's or visit the City's Facebook page.click here
 

Warmly,
 
Suja

 Do you have a great idea for an innovative government? Want to help Long Beach win $5 million to implement the idea?
 
 Long Beach will complete in a nationwide Mayors Challenge organized by Bloomberg Philanthropies. I'm asking you to share a bold idea to improve the Long Beach community and help your vision become a reality!
 
 What's next? Start by submitting your idea at www.longbeach.gov/mayor/mayorschallenge. You can also include photos and YouTube videos if that's what you need to describe your solution. I'll consider all submissions that are sent through the website by 5:00 pm, August 31, 2012. Your idea could be the one we send as the Long Beach entry to the Mayors Challenge for the $5 million grand prize.
 
Long Beach can only send one idea to the Mayors Challenge. Could it be yours?
 
If you have any questions, please contact my office at (562) 570-6801 or email mayor@longbeach.gov.
 
Sincerely,
 
Mayor Bob Foster

Long Beach Parks, Recreation and Marine invites all residents to recreation classes including Dog Training, Tap & Jazz Dance, Martial Arts, Singing/Vocal Techniques, Ukulele, and Zumba Fitness. There will also be crochet and other arts.
 

Fun, enriching recreation classes starting this fall.

For more information about Long Beach Parks, Recreation and Marine Classes call (562) 570-3148.
 

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For this and other Press Releases, please visit:
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 The City of Long Beach is alerting the public about flea-borne typhus, a disease transmitted to humans by fleas. In 2012 to date, eleven cases of flea-borne typhus have been reported among Long Beach residents, as compared to nine reported for all of 2011. Officials conducted a detailed investigation into the cases that have been reported, and believe that in all cases, exposure to fleas carried by opossums, cats, or rodents may have been the source of infection. Prior to 2006, flea-borne typhus was not known to be present in the City of Long Beach.
Flea-borne typhus (murine typhus) is a disease spread by fleas living on rodents (rats, mice), opossums, cats, and raccoons. People get the disease through the bites of infected fleas. Flea-borne typhus is not spread from person to person. The most common symptoms of flea-borne typhus are high fevers, severe headaches, body aches and a rash. The disease is rarely fatal, but people can become sick enough to be hospitalized.
Public Health Officials will continue to monitor and test for evidence of flea-borne typhus in areas throughout the City. Informational materials will also be distributed to inform the public of this disease and how to avoid it. The information can also be found on the City's Health Department's website at www.longbeach.gov/health. Area veterinarians will receive a letter requesting they educate pet owners on the importance of flea control in preventing flea-borne typhus. Long Beach has also issued letters to area health care providers providing guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of this disease.