FILE – In this Wednesday, July 15, 2020, file photo, Seattle Police officers walk past people holding signs and flags during a rally in support of police and other law enforcement officers, in front of City Hall in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
(SEATTLE, Wash.) — Seattle City Council budget chair Teresa Mosqueda has unveiled a plan to balance the city’s budget after revenue projections predicted a sharp drop-off in tax revenue over the next two years.
One of the most controversial parts of her proposal is the significant reduction in funding for Seattle Police.
Among the line items:
- Eliminating 80 FTE employees
- Reducing proposed funding for the recruiting media plan by $750,000
- Reducing proposed funding for the gunfire detection system by $1,000,000
- Reducing proposed funding for police equipment by $450,000
At the same time, Mosqueda’s proposal add $100,000 over two years to create an “Affected Persons Program” to provide support to those allegedly abused by police.
“These are tough decisions,” Mosqueda said at a Monday morning news conference. “But in every way I tried to help move us away from major policy decisions that departed from existing strategies that the Council and Mayor had already agreed upon.”
But Mosqueda’s proposal does depart from the Mayor in one significant way. In Harrell’s proposed budget, parking enforcement was moved back under the authority of SPD. But Mosqueda’s plan will keep that responsibility under the auspices of the Seattle Department of Transportation.
What to do with parking enforcement and 911 dispatch have been seen as a way for progressives to make good on police reform promises made in the wake of the 2020 killing of George Floyd.
Alex Pedersen, one of the more moderate members of the Council says Mosqueda’s proposal is out of touch with communities that demand more public safety. “The Budget Chair’s rebalancing package revisits some divisions of 2020 by defunding and deleting police officer positions, while also ignoring graffiti and giving up millions of dollars we could save for addiction treatment if we return parking enforcement back to SPD,” Pedersen said in a statement.
But the Council is running out of time to reach an agreement.
By law, a budget must be in place by the end of November.
One more public hearing is planned for November 15th, and voting on the budget package is scheduled to begin the next day.