Discussions regarding Pittsburgh’s 2026 budget have become all consuming on Grant Street, and Friday afternoon, members of Mayor Ed Gainey’s administration doubled down on their belief that the financial document is solvent.

City Council members and the city controller have decried the budget as dishonest and not accurately representing the city’s financial status. They believe that there is a $20 million to $30 million gap in the budget that must be filled.

Mr. Gainey and his staff — including Jake Pawlak, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, which creates the financial document — are adamant that there is no gap but conceded that it leaves little margin for error in the city’s finances.

“It is not our position or belief that there is a structural gap in the proposed

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