Fresno’s proposed budget investing in public safety

Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin says her 2016 budget proposal will put more police officers and first responders on the streets in the coming year. Monday afternoon, the mayor joined city staff inside the financial offices at city hall to unveil more details from her budget, which included investing in city services.

Just two years ago many experts weren’t sure if the city would make it financially. The recession hit hard in Fresno and the police department lost about 150 officers and the fire department operated with what’s been described as a skeleton crew with aging equipment.

Now Fresno’s mayor says the city is ready to once again invest in public safety.

"Two to three years ago we were being joined with other cities like San Bernardino, Stockton, and Detroit as the next city that was going to fail financially," said Fresno City Manager Bruce Rudd.

Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin says inside of her more than 300 page $ 1.2 Billion budget proposal the city is nearing long-term financial stability.

"It balances the need to improve service levels with the need to continue to rebuild our reserves," said Swearengin.

Still recovering from the impact of the great recession, Fresno’s fire and police departments are set to be replenished with funding for equipment and more employees.

"Our commitment to public safety is really the first and foremost responsibility of this agency," said Mayor Swearengin.

The budget calls for adding 43 new police officers over the course of the year, bringing the force to 760. Also, it funds the addition of three firefighters and a new truck company to better serve downtown and improve response times.

The fire and police departments would also get new equipment. The fire department would receive hand held radios and fire engines while police cars and motorcycles are in the plans for cops.

As Fresno’s mayor begins to share these budget plans she’s encouraging city leaders and the future mayors of the city to stick with the emphasis on saving and public safety.

"I believe at this point in time given the service levels we are just barely working to restore. The fact that we’re still a good 15 million dollars away from our target reserve levels, to me it seems prudent to continue to focus on rebuilding city services and rebuilding our reserves," said Mayor Swearengin.

Along with investments in public safety the budget includes funding for better code enforcement and improvements at city parks.

The budget will have to be approved by the city council in June.