Explanation
Background: The Columbus Division of Police has a need to purchase food and/or beverage items for the TAPS program, OMVI Training for recruits, and various community events throughout the year. This ordinance authorizes expenditures from the Division of Police General Fund for the purchase of food and/or beverage items, which serve the public purpose of protecting health and improving lives, for the following occasions:
The TAPS program is a mentoring program with officers for the middle school youth of Columbus. Food and beverages are provided at all of their events which include the following:
-Working with students at 4-6 of the City of Columbus Middle Schools and 10 Weeks of Summer Camp, these events provide candy and pizza or lunch with the TAPS mentor officer. Candy 100-150 pieces a week for 52 weeks in a year at $20.00 per bag of candy equals $1,040.00 for the year. The lunches are scheduled to take place 8-10 times a year and they lunches include 437 Officers and at-risk youth from 12 TAPS current in pervious schools. These lunches allow the officers to check up on their students and continue the mentoring relationship. The approximate annual cost for these lunches would be $3,500.00.
-A Summit Day - This includes 250 lunches and drinks for TAPS students, family members, school officials, administrators and officers at $8.00 a person would be a total of $2,000.00 for this event.
-TAPS Student Family Panel
-10-15 Community Events The TAPS program will purchase candy for these 10-15 events. The approximate cost for the candy for the number of events is $450.00. These meet and greet events for the families of at- risk youth and the community. We discuss the program and hand out gun safety information along with other TAPS related information. Also, we encourage our former TAPS youth graduates to come to the events to visit their mentors, receive candy, and talk to new possible TAPS students. These events include TAPS Family/Student panels, 8 Community requests for TAPS from Public Safety Office, TAPS Community Service Projects, Speaking engagements for TAPS Officer's for CPD, 5 Back to school events with TAPS requested.
The OMVI Training -NHTSA Standardized Field Sobriety Training happens multiple times a year to train recruits. It is a state-mandated, required part of their training. Food and beverages are provided to the volunteers present at the training. The volunteers are also served alcohol which they will consume in carefully measured quantities prior to submitting to standardized field sobriety tests administered by the recruits. Each training is allotted a $500.00 limit to purchase snacks, beverages, and the alcohol doses for those partaking in the training. Sworn personnel have to be recertified every year and recruits are trained while in the academy. There could be a total of six trainings per year: 2 in-services and up to 4 recruit classes. Currently the Division gets its alcohol from the State of Ohio for these trainings. The recruit classes have 50 volunteer drinkers for every two day training. The advanced training classes have twelve to sixteen volunteer drinkers for each two day training. There are times that the State cannot provide all the alcohol the Division needs for these trainings. There will be rare occasions in the coming year when it will be necessary to purchase alcohol so the Division does not have to cancel a class thereby setting the recruits or officers back because as they will no longer be certified as required. The total cap for food, beverages and alcohol for the year would be $3,000.00.
Various Community Events for the Chief’s Office-
Turkey Giveaway: November 19, 2022
$6,000 to purchase turkeys and pies. During this event we will be passing out 600 turkeys and pies to residents within the city. This will be done at 5 of our substations and headquarters.
Valentine’s Dance: February of 2023 (date TBD)
$4,000 to purchase dinner and refreshments to elderly residents of our community. During this event, Division of Police personnel will interact with elderly residents throughout the city around Valentine’s Day.
Block Parties: Throughout the summer of 2023 (dates TBD)
$7,500 to purchase food and beverages for 5 summer block parties that will be held throughout the city. These blocks parties will allow our personnel to interact with residents in a positive way.
Donuts & Discussion: Throughout the summer of 2023 (dates TBD)
$600 to purchase coffee and doughnuts throughout the year for members of the community to come out and engage in a conversation with our personnel.
Community Summit (Date TBD)
$500 to purchase coffee and doughnuts for one large scale event where members of the community can come and get an update about the Division of Police.
The total cap for these events would be $21,600.00
Fiscal Impact: The Division of Police’s General Fund will be used when the need arises for the purchase of food and beverage items.
Emergency Action: Emergency designation is requested in order to immediately facilitate the necessary purchase of these items for the upcoming Turkey Giveaway in the usual daily operation of the Columbus Division of Police.
Title
To authorize expenditures, as a public purpose, from the Department of Public Safety, Division of Police’s General Fund for the purchase of food and/or beverage items, and to declare an emergency.
Body
WHEREAS, The Division of Police has a need to purchase food and/or beverage items for the TAPS Program, and various community events throughout the year; and
WHEREAS, Sworn personnel have to be recertified every year, and recruits are trained while in the academy, in the administration of Standardized Field Sobriety Tests as part of their OMVI Training, and there could be as many as six trainings in the coming year including 2 in-services and up to 4 recruit classes; and
WHEREAS, the Division currently gets alcohol from the State of Ohio, pursuant to state law, for these trainings, however the recruit classes have 50 volunteer drinkers for every two day training and the advanced training classes have twelve to sixteen volunteer drinkers for each two day training and there may be times where the State cannot provide all the alcohol the Division needs for the training; and
WHEREAS, if alcohol is not able to be purchased, classes would need to be cancelled, thereby setting the recruits or officers back as they would not be certified as required; and
WHEREAS, the Division of Police has available general funds for the purchase of these items; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the Department of Public Safety such that it is immediately necessary to authorize the Division of Police to expend funds for the purchase of food and/or beverage items so that they are available in time to meet an immediate upcoming event all for the immediate preservation of the public health, peace, property, safety and welfare; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the expenditures described in the background and the recitals (which are fully incorporated herein) are authorized to be made, in accordance with relevant provisions of Chapter 329 of the Columbus City Codes, from the Division of Police’s General Fund in the coming months and year for the purchase of food and/or beverage items for trainings and programs and various community events throughout the year, which expenditures serve the public purpose of protecting health and improving lives. The Taps program is anticipated to spend approximately $6,000.00 annually on their events. The Chief’s Office will spend approximately $21,600.00 annually for their community events.
SECTION 2. That the expenditure described in the background and the recitals (which is fully incorporated herein) relating to the OMVI training are authorized to be made, in accordance with relevant provisions of Chapter 329 of the Columbus City Codes, from the Division of Police’s General Fund in the coming months and year for the purchase of food and/or beverage items, including alcohol where inability to obtain a sufficient supply from the State of Ohio makes it necessary to do so, for the required SFTS trainings which expenditure serves the public purpose of assuring that the Division has a sufficient number of sworn officers who are proficient in the administration of SFSTs thereby assuring public safety and improving lives. OMVI Training will spend approximately $3,000.00 annually for their events.
SECTION 3. That the City Auditor is authorized to make any accounting changes necessary to ensure that these expenditures are properly accounted for and recorded accurately on the City’s financial records.
SECTION 4. That for reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or ten (10) days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.