Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Utica council cuts police uniform budget change to $50,000 and votes to reconsider prior approval
Summary
The Utica Common Council amended the Police Uniform Division line to reduce the proposed change to $50,000, adopted the amendment, and voted to reconsider a prior police-uniform vote; the comptroller was asked to provide updated totals before the council meets again.
The Utica Common Council on March 18 amended the Police Uniform Division budget line, reducing the proposed change from $100,000 to $50,000, and voted to reconsider an earlier approval of police-uniform funding.
The council pulled ordinance number 5 (Police Uniform Division) from committee for discussion and proposed an amendment to change the “from” and “to” rows: the “from” amount was stated as $677,172 and the “to” amount as $627,172, a net change of $50,000. The amendment passed on a recorded vote reported in the meeting as nine ayes to amend; the ordinance was then adopted with nine ayes, according to the meeting record.
During debate council members discussed the need for the comptroller’s office to provide a final calculation of all amendments passed and the council’s aggregate effect on the tax levy before the next meeting. Several members cautioned that chargebacks and corrections to payroll or table-of-organization lines could leave some lines in the negative; one member asked staff to confirm whether any lines would be negative after payouts and requested any public statements about such negative balances be submitted in writing.
After passage of the amendment, a motion to reconsider the earlier police-uniform division action was put before the council. The transcript records a subsequent vote to reconsider the earlier action with seven yeas (recorded later in the meeting). Members noted the table-of-organization had been adjusted that day and that staff (including finance staff) would provide the precise dollar figures—one speaker said staff would supply “the exact penny” when available.
The council scheduled follow-up: finance staff were asked to provide an itemized summary showing how the passed amendments affect the tax levy so the council could determine whether additional changes are needed at the next meeting.
The ordinance and related amendments affect holiday pay and staffing cost lines in the Police Uniform Division; the council recorded that the changes do not remove positions, only correct totals or adjust the dollar amounts applied to the tax levy.
The council adjourned after asking the comptroller’s office to deliver the requested calculations as soon as possible.
