Voice of San Diego / May 27, 2026
Tonight, Wednesday the 27th, the San Diego City Council will hold a public hearing on this year’s proposed budget, which seeks to close a $118 million deficit. Tonight’s public hearing will be held in Council Chambers starting at 6:30 p.m.
The meeting is the latest deliberation following Mayor Todd Gloria’s May revision. He restored some library and recreation center hours after Councilmembers pushed back, saying those cuts pose a threat to public safety.
But there are still some tense conversations ahead.
About the police budget: Despite pushback from the Council and public, Gloria wants to increase the police budget by $15 million.
Those increases include about $2 million for license plate reading technology that city officials say helps prevent and solve crimes. Police officers used the technology during last week’s attack on the Islamic Center of San Diego, but failed to locate the shooting suspects in time.
Some bathrooms restored: An earlier version of the mayor’s proposed budget would have also slashed public bathrooms by about half in many of the city’s most highly-trafficked areas. The May revision restored services at five of the beach restrooms slated for closure.
Homelessness facing consequential cuts: Gloria still plans to move forward with cuts to the Neil Good Day Center, a downtown center where homeless San Diegans can shower, rest, and pick up their mail. City officials would cut spending to the center, leaving nonprofit Father Joe’s Villages to maintain operations.
In an op-ed for Times of San Diego, president and CEO of the organization, Deacon Jim Vargas, wrote that the “closure will deepen our ongoing homeless crisis and shift costs elsewhere.”
Arts and Culture still on the chopping block: Even though breakdancers, artists, and musicians flooded City Hall late last month, Gloria still plans to cut $11.8 million from the Arts and Culture Department. In an open letter, leaders of San Diego’s arts organization ask the City Council to restore the funding.
