RECESSION, CITY TAX REVENUE SHORTFALL WILL AFFECT METRO
Unprecedented declines in funding could mean less service.

Less revenue means budget problems
Metro is bracing for extremely difficult decisions in the coming months due to the recession. Revenue to operate the transit system is projected to be $6 million less in 2009 and at least $8 million less in 2010, as several factors converge to put critical pressure on Metro’s tax-supported budget:

• City earnings tax: $2 million to $3 million less
  Based on City of Cincinnati’s projected earnings tax shortfall, Metro is expected to receive less from the city earnings tax. The exact decrease is not yet known, but Metro is working with the city on alternatives. Based on the city’s public statements about its own budget, Metro anticipates a reduction of $2 million to $3 million by 2010.
  
  Metro receives 3/10 of 1% of the earnings tax collected by the city. Almost half of Metro’s $94.6 million operating budget -- $44.1 million -- is budgeted to come from the earnings tax.
  
  
• Fare revenue: $3 million to $5 million less
  Most Metro rides are related to employment or personal business. With unemployment around 10% and budgets tight, ridership is down and, therefore, fare revenue is projected to be significantly lower than budget.
  
  Earlier this year, Cincinnati City Council approved a $0.25 fare increase and the removal of a $5 monthly pass discount for Zone 2 (Hamilton County) riders. City Council did not approve the removal of the $5 pass discount for Zone 1 (City) monthly passes or a requested $0.10 increase in the transfer charge, which together represent a $600,000 loss in revenue.
  
  
• County Access non-ADA funding: $233,000 less
  Hamilton County has notified Metro that it is unable to provide 2009 general fund dollars for Access service for people with disabilities that goes beyond what the Americans with Disabilities Act requires. The county has provided funding support for this “non-ADA” service for the past decade.
  
  
• State funding: $137,000 less
  The State of Ohio has reduced the 2009 amount Metro receives for elderly and disabled fare subsidy.

Metro will spend the summer analyzing options and talking with customers, employees and others to help Metro make decisions for the remainder of 2009 and for the 2010 budget.

Stay tuned for more information as details become available.

What Metro has done so far
This year, Metro has taken many actions to reduce its budget, including:

• Restricted non-essential travel
• Deferred salaried employee merit increases until the end of the year
• Reduced internal mail pickups
• Shortened call center hours on Saturdays
• Reduced printing transfers, system maps, bus schedules, brochures, newsletters
• Increased fares and pass prices outside the city in February
• Reduced service 3% in March and May

A national perspective
Metro is not alone in facing difficult budget decisions due to the recession. Transit systems in Dayton, Cleveland, Atlanta, St. Louis, San Francisco, Portland, Boston, Charlotte, Louisville, Phoenix, Minneapolis, New York, Chicago and most key markets are either considering or have already implemented service reductions, fare increases or both to address their own budget deficits since last fall.

In Ohio, public transit systems in Dayton and Cleveland are also facing challenging budgets.

Links
News release
Frequently Asked Questions about Metro’s budget