New York, NY —

Mayor Michael Bloomberg released his preliminary $42 billion budget yesterday. To close a projected $4.8 billion gap, the mayor is asking for one third of that amount in savings, one third in borrowing, and one third in federal or state help. As WNYC’s Andrea Bernstein reports, despite the size of the cuts, the response from almost all quarters was: this is a budget we can work with.

Michael Bloomberg was a man in his element yesterday. With a large video screen and a power point remote in hand, he spoke without notes for an hour and fifteen minutes, selling his budget.

Bloomberg: so we have to face reality. This is fundamentally a different process in balancing a budget than what we’ve seen in modern times. Recently whenever there was a problem, you could grow your way out if it, and you could pray a little bit. This time the prayers are not going to be there.

Every city agency, including police, fire, and education faces cuts. The police department, which has shrunk through attrition from nearly 41 thousand to 38 thousand, would only grow back to 39 thousand. A proposed expansion of day care for low-paid workers would be stopped in its tracks, saving $80 million. And one of the council’s pet projects, recycling of metal, glass and plastic, also went on the block. The mayor said 40 percent of material collected gets thrown in a dump anyway – at a cost of about $100 more per ton than regular garbage.

Bloomberg: If you take a look at how much actually is getting recycled and the benefits to the ecology of this world based on that we are not doing a good job and its just not worth it.

To anyone who doubted cuts were necessary, the mayor flicked back and forth between two screens, one showing projected gaps before September 11, and one showing them now.

Bloomberg: What is the effect of 9/11? All of a sudden, instead of these gaps of this order of magnitude, we have these gaps of much bigger orders of magnitude.

The gaps had almost doubled. That, said the Mayor was because of a loss of almost 100,000 jobs since September 11. Even with all the cuts, the Mayor said he would borrow his way out of part of gap -- $1.5 billion. Why not just ask the federal government for that, he was asked?

Bloomberg: Oh I’d love to have the federal government, what do you think the liklihood of the federal government sending an extra one and half billion dollars to new york city, just because they’re good guys?

The Mayor did ask for some help. He wants state authority for a $1 dollar fifty cent a pack cigarette tax and more federal money for Medicaid. Even with all the cuts, most of the commentary was conciliatory. Union leaders, who in other circumstances might have blanched at the Mayor’s proposal to defer pension fund contributions said they would try and work this budget. And Council Speaker Gifford Miller praised the Mayor’s candor.

Miller: there used to be a game in which the mayor would say I’m cutting this and then he would go to the people who he would cut and then say I’m not really cutting it I’m just telling them this is where they’re going to restore it.

There were points of disagreement. The head of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association said in a world where police officers have to fight terror, there should be more than ever. Fire Chief Nicholas Scopetta said planned redeployments in the NYFD would harm morale in an already devastated department. And Deputy Education Chancellor Anthony Shorris said $350 million in proposed cuts to education would halt plans to grow programs like pre-K and after school.

Shorris: I think its in this context unlikely there would be expansions of major programs. A lot of those hope are going to have to be deferred. The goal for us now is to maintain as many programs as we have.

Most vocal were environmentalists, who called the planned cuts in recycling unlawful and ill-advised, a position the council appeared to support. Back in the fine print of the budget, there was a kicker. Even with cuts in recycling. I f you don’t recycle your paper, your fines would double. For WNYC, I’m Andrea Bernstein at City Hall.