New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg unveiled his US$43.4 billion budget on Friday for the fiscal year starting on July 1 that includes cutting some 23,000 jobs and increases in costs for everyday New Yorker.

The mayor called for a reduction of almost 23,000 jobs through layoffs and attrition. About 15,000 employees would be laid off, including 14,000 Education Department employees, and 7,700 jobs would be lost through attrition.

During his nearly two-hour statement, the mayor said that the preliminary budget for the 2009-2010 fiscal year comes as the city faces a US$4 billion budget deficit -- up from just over 1 billion dollars only a few months ago, according to a report available on www.ny1.com.

The deficit continues to rise as tax revenues plummet and the city loses out on state aid.

The downturn on Wall Street has become "a major illness for the city," as less people are earning and spending, said Bloomberg.

He said an estimated 300,000 jobs will be lost in the city next year, including 46,000 fewer jobs on Wall Street.

Part of Mayor Bloomberg's "doomsday" budget scenario for 2010 calls for raising the city's sales tax -- already one of the highest in the nation -- from the current 8.375 percent to 8.625 percent.