On a 5-2 vote, The Oakland City Council approved a resolution that was crafted by Council President Larry Reid (District 7), Councilmember Pat Kernighan (District 2), and Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan (At-Large) to direct over $6 million to hire new Oakland Police Officers if if Measure I passes in November.
Oakland voters have already received their ballots this week. If the measure passes, it will allow “the City of Oakland to spend over $5 million on police officers, as well as funding for public safety technology and youth violence prevention, if the parcel tax measure is approved by voters in November’s mail-ballot election. Funding will also go towards senior centers, libraries and pothole repair” according to the press release.
Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan, who sent the release, said:
“The resolution’s passage was a victory for advocates of open government – the authors argued that voters deserve to know how the new revenue will be spent – and for proponents of expanded public safety funding. We’ve been working at every turn to restore as many officers as possible. Restoring the number of police officers is a proven strategy to reduce crime.”
Who voted and how? Here’s the breakdown:
Council President Larry Reid (District 7), Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan (At Large), Councilmember Pat Kernighan (District 2), Councilmember Nancy Nadel (District 3) and Councilmember Councilmember Libby Schaaf (District 4). Vice Mayor Desley Brooks (District 6) and Councilmember Jane Brunner (District 1) voted against the measure.
Stay tuned.