Denver Mayor Mike Johnston wants to cut nearly all of the councilmembers’ proposed additional spending to the city’s 2024 budget plan.

The city council made 28 recommendations last week, totaling $81 million in proposed changes to the mayor’s budget. In a letter, Johnston said the price tag for the changes is too high. 

Denver City Council wants $17.5 million in budget to prevent homelessness

Johnston’s administration revised the council’s proposals to $10.6 million, claiming in the mayor’s letter that some recommendations are already budgeted in other city departments, grants and programs.

“Your funding proposals totaled $81 million in proposed changes, that is a 450% increase in funding requests compared to the last fiscal year while the overall budget only increased 3.7%,” Johnston told the council in his letter.

“I think it’s an interesting data point,” Council President Jamie Torres told The Denver Gazette in response to Johnston’s letter.

“I’m not sure that it matters as much to council members that it was more than last year.”

The mayor noted city reserve funds should not exceed a 15% threshold to “ensure Denver is prepared for whatever challenges may come in 2024.” 

“I do feel like there was some good traction on a lot of the items that were responded to, particularly around things that either may be absorbed or the department agreed to do them without an increased need and budget,” Torres said.

The council’s largest spending recommendation – fully funding the Emergency Rental Program – stood at $17.5 million for the Housing and Stability Department efforts to house Denver’s homeless and “address the issue from many angles, especially prevention,” the council said.

The council also proposed spending $1.7 million to provide homeless-related services, such as bathrooms, water stations, shower and laundry services, trash collections and charging stations.

In his response to the council, Johnston said the proposed 2024 homeless budget now dedicates $247 million through the Department of Housing Stability, “ensuring everyone has access to stable, dignified housing with the services they need to get back on their feet.”

“This includes $2.3 million for encampment services, like trash pick-up, temporary toilet facilities, transportation, and more, which already exceeds the $1.7 million proposed by City Council,” he added. 

“We have updated the budget to make significant expansions of temporary rental and utility assistance, participatory budgeting, Safe Routes to School, and mental health beds,” Johnston also said.

Torres said that, “overall, I’m not too disappointed in the budget.”

“I think some really good things were achieved. And particularly for items that weren’t included at all in the draft budget like universal basic income, and some assists to Denver Health,” Torres said. “There were a couple of things for me that were high priorities that got some traction.”

The $17.5 million Emergency Rental Assistance homeless fund stood out for Torres.

“This isn’t going to be the last time we’re going have to talk about money for it,” she said. “It’s going to come up again next year. And if we run out of money, we’re going to have to figure out how we put money back into that space.”

The Emergency Rental Assistance homeless fund aims to prevent homelessness through emergency rental help and services, including for already homeless people.

“I know my district in particular has had a huge increase in calls for eviction assistance and emergency rental assistance,” said Torres, the councilwoman for District 3.

The council will hold a required public budget hearing on Oct. 23. During the period between Oct. 30 and Nov. 6, the council may propose additional budget amendments. The deadline for Johnston to accept or veto any amendments is Nov. 10.  

But the key day is Nov. 13.

The council will have the ability to override mayoral vetoes at the Nov. 13 meeting, and must pass a final budget.

“I remind everyone that the mayor’s initial budget proposal had already addressed the council’s adopted priorities,” District 2 Councilman Kevin Flynn told The Denver Gazette. “It isn’t as though huge changes were in order. In a time of fiscal challenge such as what we now face, no one gets everything they want, but everyone gets something they need.”