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The Norman City Council held its first public hearing of the FYE 2022 budget and declared May 2021 as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month during its April 27 meeting.Â
8:45 p.m.: The council moved to open the first public hearing on the city s FYE 2022 proposed operating and capital budgets. A second public budget hearing is slated for May 25, Norman s director of finance Anthony Francisco said.Â
According to a presentation from Francisco, the city expects $284,979,608 in total revenues and $249,358,192 in total expenditures. Francisco said the main expenditures are for services that go directly to Norman residents.Â
Norman resident Stephen Ellis questioned the need for a 35 percent increase in the internal services portion of the police department s budget, comparing it to a 20 percent increase in the internal services portion of the general budget.
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The Norman City Council voted for a second time Tuesday to divert nearly one million dollars from its police department into accounts that could be used for social services. The vote was held to make up for a previous budget invalidated by the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
The Norman Fraternal Order of Police sued the city last year over its previous vote to move the same amount: $865,000.
The police union argued city council members violated the state’s Open Meetings Act by adding budget amendments to its agenda without giving proper notice. Three of those amendments targeted police funding.
Multiple Norman residents commented on the city council’s decision to reconsider approving the budget changes.
Norman City Council upholds decision to cut part of police department s budget Share Updated: 10:13 PM CDT Apr 20, 2021 Share Updated: 10:13 PM CDT Apr 20, 2021
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Show Transcript YEAH, THE BUDGET MEETINGS ACTUALLY STILL GOING ON. YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO HEAR IT WHERE YOU GUYS ARE NOW WITH JUST TO BREAK IT DOWN FOR YOU. THIS IS BASICALLY A REVOTE FROM LAST YEAR. SO REMEMBER BACK IN JUNE THE NORMAN CITY COUNCIL HAD PASSED AN AMENDMENT. THAT WAS PRETTY COMMERCIAL SO THAT AMENDMENT AGAIN IN REALLOCATED 865,000 OF POLICE FUNDING TO GO TOWARDS COMMUNITY PROGRAMS. WELL, THIS SPARKED QUITE THE LAWSUIT FROM THE NORMAN FOP SAYING THE NOTICE FOR THAT BUDGET MEETING WAS WORDED DECEPTIVELY. SO TODAY THEY REVOTED SO FAR THE COUNCIL HAS REAPPROVED ALL THREE BUDGET RELATED AMENDMENTS WHICH IS THE FINAL 2021 BUDGET ITEM. NOW THESE AMENDMENTS DECREASE THE POLICE GENERAL FUND SALARY. WILL INSTEAD PUT IT TOWARDS COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAMS AND AN INTERNAL A
Photo Courtesy of Kyle Phillips / The Norman Transcript
The Norman city council voted for a second time Tuesday to divert nearly a million dollars from its police department into accounts that could be used for social services. The vote was held to make up for a previous budget invalidated by the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
The Norman Fraternal Order of Police sued the city last year over its previous vote to move the same amount – $865,000.
The police union argued city councilmembers violated the state’s Open Meetings Act by adding budget amendments to its agenda without giving proper notice. Three of those amendments targeted police funding.