Business

Business

San Jose anticipates layoffs amid budget shortfall

A looming budget shortfall in San Jose means looming threats of layoffs at City Hall. San Jose is facing a nearly $52.1 million shortfall this year and will have to find ways to cut costs while preserving city services. City officials have been clear that cutting vacant positions will be part of the approach. What hasn’t...

Will TikTok leave San Jose if ban takes hold?

The U.S. TikTok ban is raising questions about the app’s future in San Jose, where its Chinese parent company, Bytedance, is expanding its office space. President Joe Biden signed the ban into law on Wednesday, claiming national security risks, which would prohibit the downloading of TikTok from app stores if Bytedance doesn’t sell the app...

Cupertino cuts millions in city services

Cupertino officials are about to implement some of the largest cuts to city services residents have ever seen, as the city works to balance its budget in the face of a multimillion-dollar deficit. The Cupertino City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a $9 million reduction in services for fiscal year 2024-25 in an effort to...

San Jose to launch smarter 311 app to handle vehicle complaints

San Jose is updating its 311 app that tracks resident complaints to more efficiently address thousands of requests about abandoned vehicles. The 311 app is designed to be a one-stop shop for residents to report a variety of issues including blight, graffiti and potholes, or request other supportive services. Residents depend on the city to resolve issues pertaining to...

Santa Clara County gives few contracts to minority-owned businesses

A study of Santa Clara County’s public contracts shows only a fraction goes to small, local businesses. The county launched a vendor disparity study in 2022 to examine the number of minority-owned businesses that won public contracts between July 2016 and June 2021. The study’s final draft was released last week, finding that local, minority-owned...

Sunnyvale taps AI to translate public meetings

Sunnyvale residents who don’t speak English have a new way to engage and participate in city meetings. The city is piloting an artificial intelligence-based translation service upon request for public meetings through Wordly. The technology offers live translation in more than 50 languages. Using AI is more cost effective and efficient than human translators, according...