Toledo residents will feel the impact of a citywide workforce reduction as the municipality prepares to lay off around 100 city employees effective Jan. 4, 2027, according to a report by The Blade cited by 13ABC.
Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz told The Blade that the number of layoffs exceeds earlier estimates because voters rejected Issue 16 and because income‑tax collections have fallen short of projections. He said the cuts will affect all city departments, not just public safety.
Joe Cira, president of Toledo Firefighters Local 92, confirmed that the layoffs include “upwards of 20” firefighters, a figure reported by The Blade. The fire union’s statement underscores the breadth of the reductions across essential services.
Issue 16, a temporary income‑tax increase of a quarter‑percentage point intended to fund police, fire and neighborhood‑safety programs, was defeated by voters. Had it passed, the measure would have generated roughly $25 million annually for those services, The Blade noted.
Prior to the vote, the city’s worst‑case budget scenario projected about 73 layoffs, with roughly half of those positions in the police and fire departments. The current estimate of 100 layoffs reflects the added fiscal pressure from the tax shortfall, the report added.
In addition to personnel cuts, the mayor’s office is considering other budgetary reductions. Proposed measures include ending curbside recycling, scaling back the number of crews assigned to blight remediation, and closing several city pools, as detailed by The Blade.
The administration plans to submit its proposed 2027 budget to the Toledo City Council on Monday, Kapszukiewicz said. The mayor did not specify which of the non‑layoff cuts will be incorporated into the final budget, and the timeline for final decisions remains unclear.
City workers are being notified of their status on Thursday and Friday, according to the 13ABC coverage of the story.
What’s next: The city council will review the mayor’s budget proposal next week. Residents can expect public hearings on the proposed cuts and may have opportunities to comment before the council votes on the final 2027 budget later this month.
Sources: 13abc.com
