STAMFORD — The board of finance cut $3.2 million from Mayor Dannel P. Malloy's proposed $447.8 million city spending plan, after wrangling with the budget page by page during Tuesday night's special hearing.

The cuts reduce the mayor's proposed tax hike from 9.38 percent to 8.4 percent, and reduces the city's average mill rate from 16.04 to 15.91 for the 2008-'09 fiscal year. A mill is $1 for every $1,000 of assessed property.

The board also cut $100,000 from the mayor's capital spending plan, reducing it $72.5 million.

The board approved the reductions in each budget by a vote of 4-2, with Republicans Joe Tarzia and Bob Kolenberg voting against the spending plans.

At the meeting's start, Tarzia implored his fellow board members to make aggressive cuts.

"This budget, as it is presented to us by the mayor, asks for a 9.38 percent tax increase and a 6.73 percent budget increase, and even in the best of times this would be a budget I could not support," Tarzia said. "The bottom line, is we need to be responsible to the taxpayers. Let's not kill the goose that lays the golden egg in this town."

Tarzia said it was imperative for the board to temper service needs with fiscal responsibility.

The board made a general reduction of $175,000 from the police departments $44.3 million dollar budget. The board said that while it does support a strong police presence in Stamford, it would like to see overtime spending, and vehicle costs better regulated.

"This cut will allow the chief to fill his vacancies," said Democrat Mary Lou Rinaldi. "It will allow him to hirer a finance director for the police department, which we believe will allow (the department) to make some strong productivity improvements."

The board also reduced Stamford Fire & Rescue's $34.9 million budget by $150,000.

"I think with the knew labor contract, there will be a better allocation of man-power within the department," said Democrat Tim Abbazia.

The city has attempted to bring the volunteer dire departments in Glenbrook, Belltown and Turn of River under the umbrella of Stamford Fire & Rescue in an attempt for more staffing and spending flexibility.

Belltown has refused and Turn of River is currently in mediation with the city. The board did not cut any budget allocations to the volunteer fire departments.

Two items the board did not touch were the $275,000 for additional private school nurses and $213,654 for the Stamford Cultural Development Corp., which provides funding for Stamford Opera, Stamford Symphony and the Stamford Center for the Arts.

All told, less than 1 percent was cut from the mayor's proposed operating budget.

Malloy's capital budget came under fire from Republican board members who took issue the mayor's bundling of certain projects, putting the board in an all-or-nothing position.

"I think by bundling projects, we're giving an individual too much discretion in terms of where the dollars will be spent without the authority of the boards," Tarzia said.

Once such controversial bundled request was an allocated $5.3 million for park and field improvements. All told, 19 projects are scheduled in order to upgrade and improve the city's parks and fields. Included in that request, is the construction of synthetic turf fields at West Beach, which has received outspoken opposition from Shippan residents.

Republicans, along with Democrat John Louizos, attempted to stop the allocation of funds in order to hault the West Beach fields, but failed when the board was deadlocked at 3-3.

The mayor's capital budget will be funded by $40 million in tax-supported general obligations bonds; the remainder will be supported by state and federal grants.

The board of representatives will have a chance to make further cuts to the $444.6 million operating budget when it meets on May 6. The board of finance is scheduled to meet the following week to set the city's mill rate, which determines property taxes for city residents.