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Police and fire chiefs warn council cuts could force next-year overruns; vehicle plan and equipment costs debated
Summary
Police and fire leaders told the Clinton City Council recent line-item cuts will force them to exceed budgets next year unless the council reconsiders where cuts were made; discussions focused on vehicle replacement plans, Axon body-camera/taser contracts and SAFER grant staffing for fire.
Police and fire leaders told the council the FY26 budget as presented includes cuts the departments say they cannot absorb without creating service or cost problems next year.
Chief (police), identified in workshop remarks as the department's lead, said the police vehicle replacement plan had been altered in recent years and that cuts in FY26 left his department short of planned equipment. He said the department's previous multi-year vehicle rotation had been reduced and that he was told to remove one vehicle this year; when he received the FY26 budget he found a request for three vehicles instead of two. "I can't afford to cut," he said, arguing the finance adjustments forced deep, untargeted cuts in police line items. The chief…
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