Madam President, Madam Vice President, Members of the Council, Citizens of Richmond, I address you today regarding the Fiscal Year 2011 budget for the City of Richmond. As I begin, I'm reminded that it was just one year ago on March 26, that I presented my plan to close what was then a $25 million budget gap. I stated at that time that our theme for the next two years would be "Making Efficient Decisions in Challenging Economic Times." I want to thank you for the opportunity to work in collaboration with you over this past year in meeting extraordinary financial challenges. It is worth noting that we went through that initial budget cycle without interrupting core services or initiating layoffs. Going forward, it is clear that communication, cooperation, and collaboration are still the strong principles that we must operate under. Our present day challenges call for a coordinated effort to how our government operates. As you all know, a recession has a domino effec...