(07/29/09) -  The award of $1 billion in COPS funds to American cities today by the Department of Justice reflects the good judgment of the Obama administration to protect public safety in the most direct way, and rewards the hard work of the mayors who met with the White House team earlier this year.

Many of us fought for direct aid to cities to avoid the administrative costs that occur when assistance is funneled through the states.

Mayors also argued for flexibility on how to use these COPS funds, since the national recession has put many cities in the position of having to lay off police officers to balance budgets. The wisdom of the mayors’ arguments is reflected in the new rules that allow cities to use these grants to hire back officers who have been laid off.

In Akron, we made a reasonable request for $10 million from the COPS program that would have paid the salaries of 40 police officers.

The $5.7 million grant to Akron announced today is proportional to what other cities received, and allows us to pay the salaries of 23 patrol officers.

When we were notified of state cuts, and when I received the 2009 mid-year city revenue reports earlier this month, it became apparent that we could not finish the year with a balanced budget, without a substantial reduction in our workforce. To do that, we are offering a Voluntary Separation Plan approved by City Council last night.

The number of layoffs across the city workforce in the coming months depends directly on how many workers take the retirement incentive.

There will be layoffs in all sectors of our workforce - the first in 27 years - and will include police and fire, also a first.

The COPS funds will be used only to pay patrol officers’ salaries. Whether we will be required to use these funds as many cities have - to hire back laid-off officers - or to hire new recruits who passed our test last September remains to be seen, based on the numbers of employees taking the Voluntary Separation; and other cost cutting measures we are employing with the cooperation of our managers, employees, and unions.

My personal thanks to Vice President Biden and Attorney General Holder who are again partnering with the nation’s mayors to improve the safety of our streets.