OMAHA- Omaha City Council President Chris Jerram has drafted an amendment to the proposed 2021 budget to take funds from the Police Department and allocate them to employment and health services. Jerram is suggesting that $2 million, or 1.2%, be taken from the Omaha Police Department’s proposed $161.3 million budget and given to other programming.

Under Jerram’s amendment, $500,000 would be given to Heartland Workforce Solutions and $1.5 million to community health and human services for “behavioral health counseling, mental health crisis diagnosis, treatment and response, mental/behavioral health rehabilitation services and other related treatment, housing, safety and support services.”

As proposed, the police budget would account for 36.7% of all day-to-day city spending in 2021. This year, the police budget was 37.9% of the entire city budget, Stothert said. Mayor Stothert and Police Chief Todd Schmaderer swiftly opposed Jerram’s proposal.

“President Jerram’s amendment compromises public safety and contradicts his longtime support for the Omaha Police Department and his belief that we need more police officers, not fewer,” she said.

Read the full article by clicking HERE