The City’s overall $2.7-billion budget includes $412 million of the general fund. Public-safety departments make up about 69 percent of the general fund. The police department makes up about 47.5 percent of the fund, according to a presentation by the city manager’s department.
Mayor Robert Garcia thanked the council and particularly the Financial Management staff for their efforts during the council meeting on Sept. 15.
“The budget that the council passed is both responsible and balanced,” Garcia said Tuesday. “It uses the resources that we have in front of us, I think, in a way that invests in the future. It adds to our programming and our libraries and our parks. It supports our public-safety services. And it really…speaks to the values of our city, which is ensuring that we have a healthy and prosperous community. Let me also say that…certainly no budget is ever perfect, and certainly the City would always like to have more resources.”
City Manager Patrick West had proposed a budget in July that was open to public comment and that had been discussed over the last couple of months by the city council in special budget hearings.
[aesop_image imgwidth=”350px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Public-safety-for-JUMP.jpg” credit=”CJ Dablo/Signal Tribune” align=”left” lightbox=”on” caption=”On Sept. 15, the Long Beach City Council adopted the budget for the 2016 fiscal year, along with the mayor’s proposed recommendations. Pictured, from left, are Councilmember Suzie Price, Councilmember Daryl Supernaw, Councilmem- ber Stacy Mungo, Mayor Robert Garcia, Councilmember Dee Andrews and Councilmember Roberto Uranga.” captionposition=”left”] It’s been a harder year for the police department compared to previous years.
“While the City achieved the lowest reported number of violent crimes in 2014, this year, overall crime has increased by 6.3 percent, based on a five-year average,” Luna said during a presentation to the council on Aug. 18. He acknowledged that violent crimes spiked this summer.
Expenditures for the police department have been estimated to total $209,158,622 for the fiscal year, according to the latest staff report.
Some of the changes to the department were highlighted in Luna’s report last August, and the city manager’s office reported some of the additional expenditures anticipated by the department. The cost of recruitment for the police and fire academies is estimated to total $150,000. There will be a body-camera pilot program in the next fiscal year. The substation for the East Division is scheduled to open sometime in the 2016 fiscal year. During his presentation on Aug. 18, Luna acknowledged that a number of dispatch personnel will be transferred to the Department of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Communications.
In addition to the budget proposed by the city manager’s office, the mayor recommended additional expenditures related to public safety. His recommendations include an additional $100,000 to crime analysis and $186,000 to the Be SAFE program, which provides summer youth activities. These are one-time expenditures. He also recommended $30,000 to My Brother’s Keeper, a program to aid youth transition from school to a career. The council approved Garcia’s recommendations.
Eighth District Councilmember Al Austin said Tuesday that he was pleased by the support for the Be SAFE program and for My Brother’s Keeper.
“I think it’s thoughtful. It’s balanced,” Austin said of the budget, while also praising the two programs aimed to help youth. “I think this budget does no harm. It could be better, but in light of what we know in the future, it’s a safe budget and a responsible budget.”
He asked Luna how the estimated $2.2 million of one-time funds for the police department will be used. He had hoped that the police department would address the increased gun violence in the city. Luna requested that these funds be considered discretionary. Both Garcia and Luna acknowledged Tuesday that gun violence was among the issues that the department aims to address. Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal expressed her gratitude to the mayor for his “holistic approach” surrounding the budget when he made his additional proposals that included the public-safety expenditures.
“It does take a very broad stroke across our city,” Lowenthal said. “And even though it’s not a lot of money, it does end up impacting all nine districts, and so I want to personally thank you for…taking that
approach.”
