The city finance director alerted councilors Thursday to $8.6 million in Police and Fire department funding that the city will be obligated to provide as federal grants accepted during police layoffs to retain officers run out.
The grants accepted since 2009 reversed police and firefighter layoffs but require the city to continue the grants' funding for varying periods of time after the grants end.
The grants began and end at different times, but at the peak of funding, they paid for 101 police officers and 46 firefighters' jobs, information given to councilors indicates.
Those grants are Community Oriented Policing Services hiring grants, among others that go to hiring police officers, according to provided documentation. The projections also include a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant for firefighters.
Those grants help the city with hiring and other needs but include stipulations that the city continue funding at least temporarily before a permanent decision is made.
Councilor G.T. Bynum asked Finance Director Mike Kier to update the council on the city's future liabilities as the grant funding begins to expire next year.
"We utilized federal grants to pay and even rehire officers who had been laid off to keep the city's services" at a high level, Bynum said.
Kier said the city will be liable for incremental payments of $2.04 million in 2013, $2.89 million in 2014, $1.67 million in 2015, $1.52 million in 2016 and $453,000 in 2017.
Beyond that, councilors will have to consider additional funding to keep those officers that, even with the grants, fall below the target of 780 officers, Kier said.
"Normally, we'd want to have in place at least 780 fully trained police officers," Kier said. "At this point, from where we are at if we have police leaving, we would need to replace them."
Bynum said he wanted the councilors to be aware of the upcoming liabilities, so they could be informed as they make budget decisions during the next year.
Copyright 2012 - Tulsa World, Okla.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
