Bloomberg proposes financial help plan

Photo credit: Urbanite

Mayor Michael Bloomberg (Getty Images)

(AP) — To help New Yorkers weather the economic

downturn, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Thursday he wants to relax

tax deadlines for some property owners and create a Web site for

laid-off financial workers to provide job listings and other

assistance.

At a news conference at City Hall, Bloomberg outlined a series

of immediate steps to ease the financial burden for New Yorkers

struggling to deal with the upheaval on Wall Street.

“There will be no magic bullet or easy fixes,” Bloomberg

warned. But, he added, “We will survive this crisis.”Citing the precarious financial situation, Bloomberg recently

declared that the city needs him to stick around for four more

years and announced that he plans to run for re-election.

The billionaire businessman convinced the City Council to change

the city’s term-limits law so that he could do so, sticking to his

argument that the financial emergency calls for his leadership and

expertise.

Bloomberg has ordered agencies to cut spending by 2.5 percent

this fiscal year and another 5 percent the following year to help

bridge growing budget gaps.

The projected deficit for next fiscal year, which begins in

July, is expected to be at least $3 billion when the city releases

its latest figures next week.

In addition to calling for spending cuts, the mayor had also

asked city departments to come up with ways to help individuals get

through upcoming tough times.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Bloomberg said “the panic

is probably over” in the financial markets, but he said the next

wave is already being felt citywide as businesses feel the pain of

fewer customers.

One way his administration intends to soften the blow is to help

property owners with the payment schedules on their taxes.

Bloomberg wants to adjust the deadlines for properties valued at

$250,000 or less so that property owners would pay smaller amounts

once a quarter rather than large payments twice a year, as they do

now. It would require council action to do so.

And while New York City has not seen the same rates of

foreclosures as the rest of the nation, the administration is also

planning to use $24 million in federal funding to purchase

foreclosed properties and turn them into affordable housing.

The city is planning to launch a yearlong public awareness

campaign to inform New Yorkers about how to take control of their

finances, with a first phase focusing on dealing with debt.

Bloomberg also plans to create a Web site targeted for

entry-level and mid-career professionals who have recently lost

their jobs in financial services.

It would provide job listings, freelance consulting

opportunities, help with health insurance, plus continuing

education and training resources.

The city comptroller projected earlier this month that the city

could lose 165,000 jobs over the next two years, including as many

as 35,000 in the financial services industry.

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