San Antonio council members are weighing an unwelcome choice: raise taxes for the first time in 34 years to help close a budget gap or find the money elsewhere, likely through even deeper cuts than they're already considering.

But depending on how Thursday's series of budget votes go, the city council could end up passing the budget ax to the city manager to do its dirty work.

The city's plans to close a projected $158 million deficit over the next two years involve a mix of cuts, shifting around funds, raising fees, and a pair of 3. 9% and 4. 4% tax increases.