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March 30, 2011

Mayor's budget: public safety

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's proposed operating budget, which The Sun reported today would increase spending by 1 percent, includes level funding for police and public safety, and allows the city to follow through with a plan to fill police vacancies, fund crime cameras, and fund youth violence prevention programs, officials say.

Here's the breakdown, based on budget documents:

Police Department
What they get: $355,847,340
What they wanted: $363,374,155
What they got last year: $352,998,347
Notes: The patrol division will see a decrease from $179 million to $176.9 million, while criminal investigations sees a bump from $34.9 million to $37 million (more than the agency sought) and homeland security/intelligence jumps from $12.3 million to $13.1 million. Internal affairs and the 911 center see a modest increase, while the marine unit is slashed from $2.6 million to $1 million and police recruiting and the crime lab are reduced.

State's Attorney's Office
What they get: $31,191,930
What they wanted: $32,808,841
What they got last year: $32,003,288
Notes: Victim and Witness services are increased from $998,897 to $1.16 million, and the administration budget is cut from $3.4 million to $3 million. "Prosecution of criminals" goes up from $22.7 million to $27 million. Pretrial services spending, budgeted at $3.5 million, is slashed entirely, with no reason given in supporting documents.

Fire Department
What they get: $165,689,862
What they wanted: $168,171,491
What they got last year: $163,208,352
Notes: Every area of the fire department budget appears to increase slightly, "for current service levels to be maintained." The Sun's City Hall reporter Julie Scharper says three fire houses would be closed each day, up from the current two closed each day.

Mayor's Office on Criminal Justice
What they get: $12,521,194
What they wanted: $12,385,487
What they got last year: $12,347,358
Notes: Funding is increased to generate additional grant support for public safety initiatives.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 4:19 PM | | Comments (1)
Categories: City Hall, Courts and the justice system, Top brass
        

Comments

The Marine Units budget was $40,000. last year where are they comining up with the 2.6 milion ? somethings wrong

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About Peter Hermann
Peter Hermann started covering news for The Baltimore Sun in 1990, first in Anne Arundel County and, starting in 1994, reporting on the Baltimore Police Department. In 2001, he was assigned to Jerusalem as the Baltimore Sun's Middle East correspondent. He returned in 2005 as an assistant city editor overseeing crime coverage. In 2008, Peter returned to the beat as a daily reporter and blogger. A recent BBC report featured him in a segment on the harsh realities of covering crime in Baltimore.

Coverage will focus on crime trends, problems in neighborhoods in the city and elsewhere, profiles of victims and police officers and try to offer readers a fresh perspective on one of the most vexing issues facing Baltimore and its future.



Contributing to this blog is Justin Fenton, who joined The Sun in 2005 and has covered the Baltimore City Police Department and the criminal justice system since 2008. His work includes an investigation into Cal Ripken Jr.’s minor league baseball stadium deal with his hometown of Aberdeen, a three-part series chronicling a ruthless con woman, coverage of the killing of five Amish children at a schoolhouse in Nickel Mines, Pa., and a job swap with a British crime reporter to explore differences in crime-fighting. A special report looking into how city police handle rape cases led to sweeping reforms that changed the way sexual assaults are investigated in Baltimore. He was recognized as the best reporter in Baltimore by the City Paper in 2010 and by Baltimore Magazine in 2011.
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