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Boston council narrowly fails to suspend rules to force a vote on mayor's budget
Summary
A 6-6 tie blocked a motion to suspend Rule 24 and bring an immediate vote to reject Mayor Wu's budget; councilors split over using a rejection as leverage versus working through the amendment process to restore cuts to youth jobs and services.
The Boston City Council on May 20 debated whether to suspend Rule 24 to allow an immediate vote rejecting Mayor Michelle Wu's proposed operating budget, a procedural move supporters said would force the administration to return with a revised starting point. Councilor Worrell moved to suspend the rule and call for rejection; Councilor Mejia and Councilor Murphy, among others, said a rejection would be a show of leverage to recover cuts to youth jobs, immigrant services and other community programs.
Councilor Weber, chair of the Ways and Means Committee, urged fiscal caution and warned that inflating revenue projections or dipping into reserves to cover recurring programs could harm Boston's bond rating. Weber said the council has the power to amend the budget and should use the amendment process to craft restorations without jeopardizing long-term fiscal stability.
Speakers on both sides stressed the stakes: supporters argued that a formal rejection would force the mayor to produce a stronger starting point and would signal that the council heeds resident testimony; opponents said the amendment process is the practical route to restore priorities without risking financial stability. Council debate included repeated references to roughly $20 million in proposed cuts and a $70 million supplemental appropriation tied to the current fiscal year's deficit.
After extended discussion and a roll-call on suspending Rule 24, the motion resulted in six affirmative votes and six negative votes, failing to reach the two-thirds threshold required to suspend the rule. As a result, the budget dockets discussed will remain in committee and the council will proceed with the amendment schedule outlined by Ways and Means.
The council did not vote on the budget itself at the May 20 session; the chair said in coming days the council will continue budget deliberations and the amendment process as planned.
