Faced with a rebellion by the City Council, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has agreed to shift $4.2 million in next year’s budget to after-school programs and community schools.

Lamenting that she was faced by “obstructionism,” Rawlings-Blake announced today that she will trim back other expenditures, including graffiti removal, tree maintenance and grants management, to restore the proposed cuts to youth programs.

For weeks, City Council President Bernard C. “Jack” Young and Budget Committee Chairwoman Helen L. Holton had threatened to shut down city government by refusing to approve the fiscal 2017 budget unless the youth funding was restored.

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE