Funding for a program intended to encourage international business as well cultural and artistic exchange is being cut due to the city's revenue shortfall.
The city's budgetary allotment for the Tucson Sister Cities Association has fallen steadily over the past several years from around $14,000 to $4,876 for fiscal year 2010, and members of the association say they've been prepped for the budget to be zeroed out next year.
The move makes little sense to Jerry M. Gary, treasurer of the association, because he says the program encourages the flow of foreign dollars into the city.
"Tucson's future is in developing international relations," he said. "We can't just live on the Mexican border."
Christina Parisi, assistant to City Manager Mike Letcher, says the budget cuts aren't personal - the city has reduced funding to all outside agencies (excluding Health and Human Services) by 60 percent.
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"We've reduced our budget over the past two years by over $100 million," she said. Even with those cuts, the city still has a projected $33 million budget deficit for fiscal year 2011.
"We're going through all of our funding both internally and externally and giving the mayor and council options on what to fund and how to fund it."
She said that future funding for the Tucson Sister Cities Association is as-of-yet "undetermined."
Read more in Sunday's Star
