New Orleans to consider hard limit on city spending

(The Center Square) − An amendment to the city charter that aims to rein in spending is set to be considered by the New Orleans City Council in January.

The council is expected to decide on guardrails to stop city departments from spending more than the amount the council approves each year. The charter change would also need voter approval.

An ordinance introduced by Council President J.P. Morrell would amend the section of the city’s Home Rule Charter that governs how the annual operating budget is administered and enforced. If approved, the budget would be less of a guideline and more of a hard limit, with additional reporting to the council to catch problems sooner.

“If you had that charter amendment where the budget had to specifically define where each dollar is spent, it would be very easy for the council and a mayor to determine this is what we can afford,” Morrell told the city’s Fiscal Review Committee in Novemeber. “I think that, really, the opportunity here is to change budgeting in New Orleans for...