Minneapolis City Council President brushes aside mayor's budget veto threat
Lisa Bender of Minneapolis' Ward 10
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender is firing back after Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he was "actively considering" a veto of the city's 2021 budget due to the reduction in police staffing.
Frey would only be to veto the entire budget; a line item veto is not an option. In a statement posted on Twitter on Tuesday, Bender said it is "difficult to take the threat seriously."
"If the mayor vetoes it, he will trigger a $20 million budget cut that will affect every City department next year while we are still responding to a pandemic, rebuilding public safety and facing multi-million dollar lawsuits related to police violence," said Bender.
Monday night, the Minneapolis Budget Committee approved the "Safety for All" plan created by several council members. The plan will move $7.7 million from the Minneapolis Police Department's budget to fund alternative public safety strategies, such as mental health crisis teams, violence prevention, and redirect some non-emergency calls to other departments. The plan also would decrease the amount of sworn police officers to 750 officers in 2022 and beyond.
Following the plan's approval the mayor called the reduction in staffing "irresponsible" and threatened a possible veto. In response, Bender said planning for 888 officers in 2022 is "completely unrealistic."
"The realistic budget the City Council has drafted is based on the actual current staffing of MPD after years of attrition and an exodus of officers since the killing of George Floyd and the burning of the Third Precinct," said Bender. "If the Mayor has a real plan to hire 150 more officers in 2022, he could simply propose that in next year's budget along with the taxes needed to pay for it."
Following a public hearing, the council is scheduled to vote on the budget Wednesday night.