In a Press-Telegram article this morning, columnist John Canalis reports that President Obama’s Economic Stimulus Plan will fund overtime hours for the Long Beach Police Department, which have caused a major strain on city budgets in recent years. In a speech this morning in Columbus, Ohio, President Obama made special note of the plan to fund the LBPD.
“In Long Beach, California, [the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act] will be able to help fund 17,000 hours of overtime for law enforcement officials who are needed in high-crime areas,” he said.
The Police Department commands major portions of the City’s general fund expenditures. In the fiscal year 2009 budget, Police & Fire made up $294.2 million of a total $404.2 million (or 73%) in total city expenditures.
In August 2008, Mayor Bob Foster issued the following statement in his FY09 Budget Recommendations:
For the first time in 6 years, the budget fully funds the Police
Department’s request for overtime resources, ending the need to maintain vacancies to cover costs. While our work here is not yet done, this was a significant managerial and budgetary challenge over the past several months and a great deal of credit goes to Chief Batts and his command staff for their efforts. Continued efforts to closely manage overtime expenses will still be required to maintain a balanced budget.
By Ryan ZumMallen, Managing Editor