* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: President Young
A Resolution Entitled
A Council Resolution concerning
title
Investigative Hearing - Baltimore City Police Staffing, Recruitment, and Retention
For the purpose of requesting that the Baltimore City Police Commissioner appear before the City Council to brief it regarding recruitment efforts, officer retention, and recouping training dollars, report on the number and percentage of individuals that enroll in the police academy, graduate from the police academy, and are employed by the Baltimore Police Department after graduation, and discuss the retention rate of those employed by the Baltimore Police Department, the deployment of officers, and how that deployment will enable the City to curtail the rise in violent crime.
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Recitals
Baltimore City ended 2016 with 318 homicides. In February 2017, Baltimore City has already surpassed 42 homicides, more than 140 people have been shot, and 92 people have been the victim of a carjacking. By any measure, Baltimore City has a violent crime problem.
On January 12, 2017, Baltimore City and the Department of Justice filed a consent decree in Federal Court. This consent decree outlines reforms aimed at improving nearly every facet of policing and community relations in Baltimore City.
The Fiscal Year 2017 Ordinance of Estimates budgeted over $480 million to the Baltimore Police Department. This figure includes funding for 3,125 funded positions. Compared to the Fiscal Year 2012 budget, this budget is $100 million greater but represents a decrease of nearly 350 funded positions, more than 250 of those positions in police patrol.
On February 21, 2017, the Baltimore City Council received a budget update that shows expenditures for the Police Department are projected to end 2017 with a $17.8 million deficit, including an overtime deficit of $27 million. The majority of this overtime spending is due to “staffing shortages as well as investigations and homicides”
Baltimore City needs a strategy to address violent crime and respond to the need for community police, while recruiting, training, and hiring employees and controlling spending.
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the City Council of Baltimore, That the Council requests that the Baltimore City Police Commissioner appear before it to brief the Council regarding recruitment efforts, officer retention, and recouping training dollars, report on the number and percentage of individuals that enroll in the police academy, graduate from the police academy, and are employed by the Baltimore Police Department after graduation, and discuss the retention rate of those employed by the Baltimore Police Department, the deployment of officers, and how that deployment will enable the City to curtail the rise in violent crime.
And be it further resolved, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the Police Commissioner, and the Mayor’s Legislative Liaison to the City Council.