MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis city council member Martavius Jones is proposing reallocating funds from Memphis Police and Fire to help Memphians who are struggling to pay their utility bills.
Thousands of Memphians owe millions of unpaid utility bills. Many of them saw their services get disconnected last week while others waited hours in long lines trying to make payment arrangements. Many families are struggling to make ends meet and are trying to get their services reconnected as the school district has gone virtual this week.
Jones said he understands the issues Memphians are facing amid the ongoing pandemic, and he wants the city to take a small amount of money from Memphis Police and Fire to help people during this utility crisis.
“I want us as a council to be known as a council that has gone out of their way in these extraordinary circumstances to help,” Jones said. “It is totally about taking it from our largest allocations for expenses.”
Jones is proposing taking $5.7 Million out of the Memphis Police and Fire budget and using it to help families in need. He said it has nothing to do with the movement to defund the police and everything to do with providing aid for families in need.
Though Memphis Police and Fire have the largest budgets in the city, they said doing this, even if it is a small percentage, sets a bad precedent moving forward.
“I understand what they’re trying to do,” Mike Williams, President Memphis Police Association, said. “But they need to be even more innovative and creative.”
Williams said though the figure only represents 1.2 percent of the police and fire budget, he said this potential cut makes the city’s safety goals impossible to achieve.
“They’re asking for a safer city. They’re asking for the ability to sit on their porch. They’re asking for crime to be reduced. That’s not something that we can ignore as well,” Williams said.
As thousands of families are facing utility cut-offs, Jones is hoping his resolution will move quickly once it hits the city council floor on Tuesday. Nevertheless, this proposal is coming with some opposition, as Williams said he is not in favor of cutting any of the Memphis Police and Fire budget at this time.
