Mayor unveils budget plan that saves cops, but cuts teachers raise

Mayor Michael Bloom-berg released his revised budget proposal for the city Thursday, and although it didn't have cuts to major services, critics said he made unnecessary reductions to balance it.

An increase in working New Yorkers helped to pay for the $69.8 billion budget thanks to tax revenues, according to the mayor, but there are many costs that he said are rising faster than inflation.

The budget doesn't cut the number of firefighters, sanitation workers or police officers. The NYPD will have an accelerated hiring schedule to counter the 500 cops it will lose to attrition, the mayor said.

However, Bloomberg proposed shutting down 20 firehouses and eliminating a retroactive 4% raise to public school teachers, which he said would require $7.8 billion in this year's budget and $3 billion annually starting next year.

Several groups and elected officials, including the United Federation of Teachers, weren't happy with the cuts and urged the mayor to reconsider. UFT President Michael Mulgrew also cautioned Bloomberg's successor not to follow his economic lead when it comes to education.

The City Council will vote on the budget on June 5.