WYOMING, Mich. — Community members in the city of Wyoming will get to approve or deny a boost in public safety funding in this May’s election.
If approved, the city says the extra funding would lead to faster response times, allow them to fully operate all four first stations, enhance crime prevention and improve traffic safety.
“There’ll be [a] split between police and fire to support the funding needs,” Wyoming’s Interim City Manager John McCarter told FOX 17.
The city says the Public Safety Department’s current staffing levels are fewer than what they were back in 2000— even though the city’s population has grown ten percent since then.
“What we’ll fund with that are 27 additional positions— that will be 13 in the fire department and 14 on the police side…There’s a great relationship there and a lot of benefits from the model we have, but they’re not cross-trained and we’re not planning to do that,” he added.
The Wyoming Department of Public Safety is asking voters to approve a 1.5 mill increase over the next five years.
This would include a more than $3.8 million boost in the first year.
“We also have a capital item in there this first year that will be used to buy a platform truck, but all four million dedicated to public safety needs,” McCarter added.
The city went for the funding proposal back in 2022— asking voters to implement a new, one percent income tax for residents, 0.5 percent for non-residents and a lowered millage rate; however, nearly 70 percent of voters said “no.”
“A lot more complex last year. Wasn’t just about police and fire, was also about parks and kind of broadly how we fund local government and these essential services,” McCarter explained. “So, this year, we really tried to simplify. It’s a smaller package [than] last year.”
Right now, the city relies on grant funding, tapping into the general fund and delaying projects to fund several positions for both police and fire.
The city says this millage increase would cover those positions, and several others, to equal the 27 needed staff members.
“The first staff that we have, they’re being overworked, and it’s not fair to them,” McCarter said. “They’re doing a great job. They provided exceptional service. I’m very proud of the staff that we have. We have to get them more to support them in that work.”
To learn more about this public safety funding proposal— or to find out exactly how much it would increase your tax bill— click here.
