PETA has jumped on a Baltimore proposal to sells ads on fire trucks by offering to brand them with steamy ads promoting vegan lifestyles.

When it comes to winter weather, we’re a 24th-tier city. We’re certainly not complaining.

When the District is short on cash, its leaders tend to places freezes on hiring and travel. Mayor Vince Gray just did the same.

Here’s a New York Times report about the failure of the Congress to extend the bill to keep the Federal Aviation Administration afloat, which, in turn, is hitting air travelers hard in the pocket. But one particular line in the story caught my eye.

I know, I know, we’re tired of taking budget surveys, too. But since next week is WMATA budget hearing week, and Metro is suggesting cutting increasing weekend headways and bus service, its probably worth taking a few minutes out to let them know what you think about the proposed fiscal year 2012 budget.

Somewhat lost in the shuffle of the District’s attempts to close a $322 million budget gap is the fact that WMATA is dealing with a somewhat sizable gap of its own — $72 million, at last count. So what measures are the WMATA Board of Directors considering to close that deficit?

This morning, the D.C. Council got their first chance to comment publicly about Mayor Vince Gray’s 2012 budget, and a large majority of the comments were supportive.

Mayor Vince Gray admitted that its construction was affected by the “perception of government spending more than it should.” It includes an increase on income taxes for those making $200,000 (which a little less than five percent of the District would have to pay and sounds a lot like one that failed to pass the Council last year), plus a whole bunch of other cuts and taxes. Jack Evans (who called it “one of the worst [budgets] I’ve seen in my time here”) really doesn’t like it, Kwame Brown probably won’t vote for it, and other councilmembers and stakeholders are none too pleased. On the other hand, service advocates and fans of a progressive income tax increase are happy. It didn’t mess with streetcars or teachers. It’s been certified by the District’s Chief Financial Officer, though it obviously wouldn’t be complete without some question of some questionable accounting.

This morning, Mayor Vince Gray presented his budget to the D.C. Council inside a packed room of Councilmembers, staff and press. At first glance, the District will solve its $322 million budget gap with $187 million in cuts, $127.2 million in revenue increases and $7.9 million in added “leasing, sales and advertising”.

Some positive budget news from the District’s Chief Financial Officer today: thanks to an uptick in tax revenue, the city’s budget gap for fiscal year 2012 has been reduced from as high as an estimated $600 million to about $322 million.