My name is Jade Cho and I am a lifelong resident of District 4. In this critical moment, I urge you to defund OPD and invest in Black communities. OPD has terrorized Black communities for its entire history and has been responsible for too many deaths. It is unconscionable that OPD is slated to receive 44.09% of the general fund when services that actually support the well being of Oakland communities are severely underfunded. Please meet the demands being put forth by APTP and other community organizations:

1. Reduce OPD's general fund budget by 50% ($150 Million)
2. No unauthorized overtime for OPD
3. Invest in housing, jobs, youth programs, restorative justice, and mental health workers to keep the community safe

Oakland must join cities like Minneapolis that are making history. Statements are not enough; the city must defund the police and make concrete changes to show that Black Lives Matter. (Note: There were previously over 90 comments here that are now gone.)

My name is Karin Dahl and I am a resident of district 5 and have previously lived in 1 and 3. I am writing to urge you to reduce the Oakland Police Department’s allocation from the General fund by 50% (Roughly $150 Million). These funds should be allocated to services that assist the community rather than terrorize them. We are currently seeing statewide budget cuts to health, housing and disability services so it is absolutely imperative for our city to continue to address these issues by financially investing in them. Furthermore, the general fund should absolutely never be used to pay for settlements due to police murder, misconduct, and negligence (for example nearly 1 million dollars was used to pay a lawsuit involving a minor that was sex trafficked by OPD a few years ago). I urge you to prioritize investing in housing, jobs, youth programs, restorative justice, and mental health services to keep the community safe.

Hi! Ellen Cohan, resident of district 2. I am glad to see my councilperson, Nikki Bas, propose to cut $25M from the OPD budget, but this is not enough. I oppose the proposed budget and ask the council to cut 50% from the OPD's budget that comes from the general fund ($150 million) and reinvest this money in human services, housing, and education. Stop unauthorized use of overtime by OPD.

We need leaders right now. You can be on the right side of history. Start today.

I am a resident of Oakland district 3 urging you to defund OPD! In particular, reduce OPD's portion of the general fund by 50%, disallow unauthorized overtime by OPD, and discontinuing usage of general fund dollars to pay for police settlements. The time to act is now!

My name is Marley Antolin Muniz and I am an Oakland resident (district 3) writing to urge you to defund OPD. It is time we as a city address the ACTUAL underlying problems in our population, not just use police to inflict harm. I support the spirit of the proposal by Nikki Fortunato Bas: "to reallocate (from the police budget) at least $25 million towards improving safety and providing the services our residents really need," but this proposal does NOT go far enough!

As Oakland residents, we, therefore, demand that you take immediate action to ensure the following: Reduce OPD's allocation from the General Fund by 50% (roughly $150 Million), Disallow unauthorized overtime by OPD, Discontinue use of general fund dollars to pay for settlements due to police murder, misconduct, and negligence, Invest in housing, jobs, youth programs, restorative justice, and mental health workers to keep the community safe.

as a city, we demand more be done than just insufficient retraining programs.

I’m an Oakland resident urging you to defund OPD. OPD takes a huge share of the city’s general fund, a percentage that has risen exponentially for the last two decades while essential city programs & services are underfunded. OPD has overspent its authorized overtime budget by 100% - tens of millions of $. This has not made us safer. OPD remains an embarrassment to the city & a lethal threat to Oakland’s Black & Brown communities. With Oakland's current finances in dire jeopardy it is clear that we must defund the police.

I urge you to: 1. Reduce OPD’s allocation from the General Fund by 50% (roughly $150 Million); 2. Disallow unauthorized overtime by OPD; 3. Invest in housing, jobs, youth programs, restorative justice, and mental health workers to keep the community safe.

Oakland cannot wait any longer for a budget that meets the needs of its residents. The only way to achieve this is to take immediate steps to Defund OPD.

Thank you,

Graham Steele

My name is Meg Whedbee and I am a District 1 Oakland resident adding my voice to urge you to defund OPD.

The budget clearly shows that the city of Oakland prioritizes the OPD above the wellbeing and success of Oakland residents. This is NOT acceptable. We have a chance now to reverse course and divert funds AWAY from surveillance, criminalization, and violence and TOWARD the wellness and resilience of our communities. I stand with the Anti Police-Terror Project and other Black Oakland leadership calling for change NOW.

I urge you to be bold and take immediate action to ensure the following:

1. Reduce OPD’s allocation from the General Fund by 50% (roughly $150 Million)
2. Disallow unauthorized overtime by OPD
3. Discontinue use of general fund dollars to pay for settlements due to police murder, misconduct, and negligence
4. Invest in housing, jobs, youth programs, restorative justice, and mental health workers to keep the community safe.

My name is Joanna Brockhouse, I live in district 3. I oppose the current budget and support the demands brought forth by the Anti-Police Terror Project in effort to defund OPD: 1. Reduce the police budget 50% 2. Disallow unauthorized overtime payment 3. Invest these funds in affordable housing, education, health care and other programs that make communities in Oakland safer than the police ever have. $25 million is not enough of a reduction in the police budget. We need to immediately divest the disproportionate share of the budget that OPD receives. Money should be directly invested back into the communities most impacted by the violence from OPD and the prison industrial complex.

This budget is an affront to those who can read. Last week, I heard OPD defend how they have on average 10% unstaffed but budgeted positions. This budget is basically OPD offering to give back money they haven't used.
During the police commission meeting last week, Interim Chief Susan E. Manheimer was asked about non-emergency calls - I have no idea why she brought up abandoned cars! Her statement on the city website claims that during protests, more than 700 calls for service were delayed of which 100 were priority calls. No-brainer here: let's cut the non-priority calls!
We need to reduce OPD’s general fund budget by 50% ($150 Million), no more unauthorized overtime for OPD, and no more general fund $ to Pay legal settlements due to police murder, assault, misconduct, and negligence. We need you to invest in housing, jobs, youth programs, restorative justice, and mental health workers to keep the community safe.

My name is Georgia Valentine, and I'm a resident of Oakland's District 1. I oppose the proposed budget, and I urge you to defund OPD.

I call on the city council to meet the demands put forth by Black-led community organizers:
- Reduce OPD’s allocation from the General Fund by 50% (roughly $150 Million)
- Disallow unauthorized overtime by OPD
- Invest in housing, jobs, youth programs, restorative justice, and mental health workers to keep the community safe.
- Oakland can not wait any longer for a budget that meets the needs of its residents. The only way to achieve this is to take immediate steps to Defund OPD.

why are you deleting comments? where are the 50+ comments here before?

My name is Margaret Hitchcock and I live in District 3. I am a Mental Health Clinician and am appalled that the police are still being used to intervene in mental health crisis. I have joined Black leadership here in Oakland in asking that the city budget reflect the needs of all members of the community. It is inexcusable that over 40% of the city budget is given to the police department, when they do not have the skills that others in the community have spent years building. We must cut their budget by at least 50% so that we can fund housing for our unhoused, fund mental health support for those who need it, build out restorative justice solutions, and fund other real solutions to the public health crisis' that are disproportionately experienced by the Black community here in Oakland. The police have used their positions to escalate situations and terrorize citizens. We need to stop using general fund dollars to cover their crimes. Fund the community to keep ourselves safe.

Few disagree that police are capable of addressing our most pressing social problems, from homelessness to addiction to domestic violence. But let’s be real: if OPD can’t even solve the majority of homicide cases on its books, what can it do?

We need to begin building up systems of public safety that draw on restorative and transformative justice, not keep leaning into the punitive logic of the prison-industrial complex. That work starts today, councilmembers. The Anti Police-Terror Project has for five years been making a righteous demand: to take 50% of OPD’s operating budget, currently ~$150 million, and move that money to a model of public safety that relies on meeting people where they are, not on bullets, tear gas, surveillance, and coercion. This is the direction we need to be headed.

Stand with us.

I’m an organizer with Sugar Freedom Project and I live in Fruitvale and Mam community. Please allocate SSB Tax revenue to Saba Grocers Initiative and Sugar Freedom Project. We are working together to address the urgent food needs of communities hardest hit by COVID-19 and root causes of food deserts through community organizing. Funding will directly support the continued work of community organizers from the most impacted communities collaborating with corner store owners to deeply engage their neighbors in transforming stores with fresh, affordable produce and healthy products, workshops, and community building events. Past SSB Tax revenue funding helped us build a multi-racial, ethinic, and linguistic coalition of over 500 Oakland families most impacted by diabetes and obesity, coming together to share healthy cultural traditions and develop community-based solutions. Continued funding will help this coalition transform the local food system to center community needs and vision.

Trying to reform the police is like trying to bandage on a rotten limb that requires amputation. I insist the council defund the Oakland Police Department by at least fifty percent. To do less at this historic moment would be an unforgivable act of cowardice.