09-01-10 80% of General Fund keeps public safety at full strength

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Office of the Mayor NEWS RELEASE September 1, 2010 3:30 p.m. 80% of General Fund keeps public safety at full strength Contact: Mikki Dobski, Director of Communications & Special Projects, 235-5855 or 876-1564, Gregg Zientara, City Controller, 235-9216, Police Chief Darryl Boykins, 235-9201, or Fire Chief Howard Buchanon, 235-9255 South Bend Police and Fire departments will operate at full strength in 2011 thanks to the Local Option Public Safety Tax, ongoing federal stimulus assistance and a growing percentage of the City’s General Fund budget devoted to public safety. More than 80 percent of the City’s 2011 General Fund budget is devoted public safety – Police, Fire and the 911 Communications Center – compared with 75 percent as recently as 2009. The expanded funding has enabled the Police Department to bring its number of sworn officers from 248 to full strength at 260 in eight months, with the Fire Department reaching its full strength of 248 firefighters during 2010. In a budget presentation today to the South Bend Common Council, Mayor Stephen J. Luecke and City Controller Gregg Zientara said the nearly $5 million projected to be generated annually by the Public Safety tax will be transferred into the General Fund, where its appropriation will support additional police officers and firefighters. “Public safety is the City’s top priority, accounting for eight of every $10 tax dollars in our General Fund,” Luecke said. “These resources have enabled us to put more public- safety personnel on the street and to allocate our strength where it’s most needed.” The Public Safety Tax is allowing Police Chief Darryl Boykins to move towards fully staffing the midnight shift and implementing a new Street Crimes Unit, which allows the expansion of special patrols to targeted areas. -more-