CINCINNATI — A proposed charter amendment seeking to disarm some police officers and put a cap on Cincinnati police budgets has failed to get enough signatures to appear on the November ballot, according to Hamilton County Board of Elections officials.
While the amendment would not have completely defunded police, it would cap the department’s budget at 25% of the city's overall budget, compared to 36% of the budget in the last fiscal year.
"Funding for the Public Safety Department shall come exclusively from the City of Cincinnati’s General Fund, and the total annual budget of the Public Safety Department shall not exceed 25 percent of the General Fund Operating Budget. The total annual budget of the Felony Crimes Division shall not exceed 10 percent of the PSD’s annual budget. The annual budget of the PSD shall be submitted by the executive director to the council for final approval," the amendment read.
Representatives from PSRe were unavailable for comment Thursday night. The group said it gathered nearly 7,000 signatures; it needed only around 5,000 signatures to get the initiative in front of voters this fall.
In social media posts, the group said it had received the results from the Hamilton County BOE and "are reviewing the information and will release our group's next steps in the coming days."
