KEY TAKEAWAYS:

New Orleans adopts $1.6B budget that closes a $222M deficit.

Plan combines $150M in cuts with $74.5M in new and reclaimed revenue.

Public safety agencies receive increased or maintained funding for 2026.

Budget crafted by council and Mayor-elect Moreno after disputes with outgoing administration.

The New Orleans City Council on Monday unanimously adopted a $1.6 billion operating budget for 2026, closing a projected $222.4 million deficit and aiming to stabilize city finances after a year marked by a payroll scare and warnings of possible state intervention.

The spending plan, built around recommendations from Mayor-elect Helena Moreno and Budget Chair Joe Giarrusso , pairs roughly $150 million in departmental reductions with $74.5 million in new and previously un

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