The Minneapolis City Council is pushing forward with a budget proposal that would redirect almost $8 million from the Police Department, despite a veto threat from Mayor Jacob Frey.
The cuts would help fund other public safety initiatives and programs, such as expanding training programs on responding to mental health calls. The proposal would also reduce the number of officers on the force for 2021 from 888 to 750, according to Minnesota Public Radio.
Council President Lisa Bender defended the proposal, which was unanimously passed for a final hearing and vote later this week, after Frey said he is “actively considering” a veto over the push to reduce the size of the force.
“The City Council has stepped up to lead, to listen, and respond to complex demands from a community reeling from the death of George Floyd and persistent police and community violence,” Bender said in a statement on Tuesday.
According to KARE 11, the redirected funds would also go to a violence prevention fund, training for nonpolice staff to help respond to property damage and theft reports, move parking problem calls to 311 and traffic control systems, and add staff to the city’s civil rights department overseeing police conduct.
Council members also approved a staffing fund for the Minneapolis Police Department, which would allow hiring new recruits but would mandate the police chief get authorization from the council on new hires.
Frey, a Democrat, accused the council of ignoring a “mutually-agreed upon staffing study” on police staffing and a business and community initiative that would allocate $5 million for mental health services to work with emergency response.
“Mayor Frey’s insistence that we should plan for 888 police officers in 2022 is completely unrealistic,” Bender said. “The realistic budget the City Council has drafted is based on the actual current staffing of MDP after years of attrition and an exodus of officers since the killing of George Floyd and the burning of the 3rd precinct. If the Mayor has a real plan to hire 150 more officers in 2022, he could simply propose that in next year’s budget along with the taxes needed to pay for it.”
Minneapolis became the epicenter of public unrest after the police-involved death of Floyd over the summer. Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died after a white officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes. That now-former officer, Derek Chauvin, and three other ex-officers who were on the scene, are now facing charges.
Floyd’s death, along with other police-involved incidents resulting in the high-profile shootings and deaths of black people, sparked national outcry, prompting protests for police reform and racial equity.
Police Chief Medaria Arradondo, the city’s first black police chief, urged the council not to cut officers from the budget because the department is trying to find out how many officers might return from leave and how new programs will affect their workload as well as what a pending study on staffing might recommend, according to the Star Tribune.
Over the summer, hundreds of officers filed to leave the department after the city faced weeks of unrest, which at times turned violent. The city has reported a jump in violent crimes this year.
“One of my concerns that I would urge our council is to not feel comfortable or confident in terms of forecasting, whether that’s me as a chief or the future chief who’s in this position,” Arradondo said.
If the mayor issues a veto, he would have to do so for the entire budget, not just individual provisions. Bender said a veto would result in a $20 million cut to city programs and staffing for 2021 and that it would reset the property tax levy at the 2020 level.
“This veto would be so destructive to the city and our residents that it is difficult to take the threat seriously,” Bender said.
A full vote by the council is scheduled for Wednesday. Some members said they would bring forward additional proposals before taking a final vote.
