For the Third Time, Emergency Appropriations Do Not Get Passed

It feels like a deja vu.

, the city council meant to fund the city's expenses through April.

Mayor Dawn Zimmer on Thursday said that the city is talking to the Division of Community Affairs in Trenton to decide on what happens next.

The appropriations failed in a 5-4 vote, with the minority council members—made up of critics of the mayor—voting against. 

During the previous council meeting on the matter, the city council unanimously approved to keep funding every single one of the city's 29 ongoing law suits. But, Zimmer said, without appropriations,

The appropriations also included roughly $68,000 needed for the fire department to accept a $300,000 FEMA grant (some of the money needs to be matched in order to accept). 

Also in the roughly $750,000 is $95,000 to potentially demolish the burnt down building on First and Jackson Streets and pay the city's firefighters. The fire fighters are paid until March 31. 

Zimmer called the no-votes a "mixed message," because the council voted to fund the law suits.

Fourth Ward Councilman Tim Occhipinti proposed to break up the appropriations and only fund salary and wages through April. 

"This is not a good road to go down," said assistant corporation counsel Melissa Longo. 

Occhipinti said he wanted to go through every line item and decide what to approve and what not to approve. 

"To do that," Longo said, "is putting the city in a bad position." 

Third Ward Councilman Michael Russo, who voted against the appropriations, said he doesn't believe the emergency appropriations are necessary before the entire budget is passed. 

The majority council members and the mayor disagreed, saying that the budget won't be passed by early april, at which point the line item to pay fire fighters will be empty. 

The first draft of the 2012 budget was introduced on Wednesday night by Finance Director Nick Tresante.