Metro Council Approves Budget

The Metro Council unanimously approved Davidson County’s $1.5 billion budget last night.

The budget is $28 million below last year’s. Originally, 125 Metro employees were expected to lose their jobs, but the number has dropped.

But Councilman Michael Craddock says it’s still not easy to vote for the budget.

“We’re going to lay people off come July 1. And these people have families, they have children, they have wives and husbands and children that they put in school everyday in this city.”

Metro Finance Director Rich Riebeling says the actual number of layoffs should be in the mid-70s and that the number is fluctuating because they’re trying to find placements for those employees in other Metro agencies.