A RESOLUTION modifying the Mayoral Civil Emergency Order of October 29, 2021, related to hiring incentives for public safety emergency response.
Thank you, Madam Clerk. Resolution 32026. Agenda item five is adopted and the chair will sign it. Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation on my behalf? Will the Court please read the title of item six into the record and the item six Resolution 32027. A resolution modifying the Mayoral Civil Emergency Order of October 29th, 2021, related to hiring incentives for public safety. Emergency Response. The committee recommends the City Council adopt, as amended, the resolution with councilmembers Herbold, Gonzalez, Lewis and Morales and favor councilmembers Macheda and Serrano opposed and councilmembers Suarez, Peterson and Strauss abstaining. Thank you, madam. Are there any comments on resolution 32027? Agenda item six. Councilmember Herbold, please. Thank you so much. As a clerk, this was approved in the Budget Committee by a42 vote with three abstentions. The CBA and the resolution are intended to amend the mayor's emergency order on hiring incentives to first limit the duration of the emergency order through the end of 2021. And secondly, to limit expenditures pursuant to the order $500,000 in 2021 is the amount his office estimated would meet it in 2021. The resolution works in conjunction with a budget action in the chairman's balancing package, which requests a report from the City Budget Office to the Council on a potential citywide hiring incentive for frontline workers beyond those covered in the mayor's current emergency order. Extending those incentives to to recruits, to departments beyond speed and the Community Safety Communication Center. Item Leaves in place Mayor's Executive Order regarding hiring bonuses for police officer in line areas through the end of 2021. Some of you may recall that there is another proposal not on the agenda today to limit the hiring incentives to only see us seek recruits and not permit the incentives or our recruit. If the vote in favor of action eight does not prevail, we will very likely see the other proposal before us at our next meeting, and that this proposal is related to an executive order promulgated by Mayor Durkan. I believe it's appropriate the executive order and end of her term regardless which action amending mayor and executive order ls. Incoming elect incoming mayor elect Harrell could issue a new executive order in 2022. Support important work of all of our city departments and I recognize the difficulty we are having filling vacancies in this labor market and the impact on the delivery of supply of public services and the impact on morale in each of these departments. And for that reason, I, for one, would strongly prefer of a 2022 fixation, which means indeed, we could add bonus incentives for rather than having a new conversation both this year and again next year, about excluding SPV officer recruits. Finally, as a reminder, the balancing package before us. There is no funding for bonuses in 2022 as a quently then those funds are not in the 2022 budget. It's more important than ever that if we're going to have a bonus program in 2022, we have deliberations about how to fund it before authorizing it. Thank you. He becomes member. Councilmember Peterson, please. Thank you. Council President. I thank you, Councilmember Herbold, for that. I support Mayor Durkin's executive order for hiring incentives, and it seems to have achieved some early success. I believe these hiring incentives are needed after the alarming spike in the number of police officers in 911 dispatchers leaving their positions. At the same time, I agree that today's suggested modifications of the executive order from our public safety chair are reasonable and fiscally prudent as they allow the hiring incentives to continue to the end of this year. And while the Council unfortunately did not approve hiring incentives as part of our fall budget process for next year 2022, today's action still leaves the door open for the incoming administration to reissue a similar executive order if needed, as Seattle competes with other jurisdictions across the nation for emergency response personnel. I would encourage the incoming administration in January to do what it can and not only to hire police officers and firefighters and 9 million dispatchers, but also to retain these valuable employees that we already have. So they continue to serve Seattle. So I will be voting for these modifications. Thank you. I think it comes from Peterson, who has more than one. Thank you. On October 29th, Mayor Durkan issued an emergency order to reinstate hiring bonuses of up to $25,000 for new police officers. Ironically, her excuse for this emergency order was to give police even more money because of the COVID 19 emergency. In other words, even though so many police officers are actually endangering the public by refusing to be vaccinated or to wear masks, they still apparently need to be given more money. Mayor Durkan has shown a shocking double standard when she advocated for hiring bonuses in the Seattle Police Department. The police are some of the highest paid city of Seattle employees, making more than double what is paid to social workers like homeless service workers. The mayor has claimed in the past that she could not that she could she could not open homeless shelters and tiny house villages because there are not enough homeless service workers to staff new spaces. Where are the hiring bonuses then, or just decent living standards for impoverished homeless service workers who actually help people turn their lives around? Most importantly, the size of the police budget is not what has a statistical impact on the amount of crime in a community, and that includes police officer salaries as well, not having a statistical impact on public safety. I apologize for my dog. It is reducing inequality and providing affordable housing and living wage jobs and affordable services, including childcare, but has a greater statistical impact. I absolutely share the concerns that working people have about the rise in gun violence. There is no question that we do need to address this. But if you look at the data, you will see that this is happening. Even though the police budget has been bloated for many years, while the social services and affordable housing that working people, oppressed communities and the poor need continue to be gravely underfunded and at the same time, rents by corporate landlords are skyrocketing. Studies show overwhelmingly the best and really only solution to public safety issues is to fund the needs of our society to address crime, and particularly to stop crimes before they even happen. We need to find affordable housing, social housing that is publicly owned, high quality, affordable housing funded by taxing big businesses and the wealthy. We need to raise wages and and exploitation, not increase repression. We need an elected community oversight committee with full powers over the police. On November eight, my office introduced legislation to modify the mayor's executive order, which would stop the implementation of the police hiring bonuses that the council voted on Loder in September against implementing twice by legislation left in place the hiring bonuses for 911 operators. However, rather than bringing that legislation to a vote, it was delayed by two weeks to give the political establishment the opportunity to bring alternative legislation through the Budget Committee that essentially approves the mayor's executive order, which is the bill in front of us today. I'm confused how this bill, which does not amend one word or a number in the budget, was treated as budget legislation. But regardless, it is the bill in front of us today. This bill approves Durkan the executive order on hiring bonuses for the duration of her term. In my view, those hiring bonuses are a terrible misuse of city resources that should be used for affordable housing, social services and for the needs of our communities. So I will be voting no on this resolution if the majority of the Council agrees with me and votes no on this emergency order. I hope the Council will consider to schedule a will. Agree to schedule the resolution from my office rejecting the mayor's emergency order for a vote next Monday. Thank you. Thank you, Councilmember. Silent. Are there any additional comments on item six, which is resolution 32027? Councilmember, will you have the last word. On the points for the viewing public? I just want to advise that the mayor's office has confirmed that funding is available throughout during 2021 to implement the executive order. I have requested an update from the Mayor's Office on the implementation of the vaccine mandate as it pertains to police officers and 911 dispatchers. I'm confused as to. Councilmember still wants reference of the vaccine mandate and the fact that officers haven't complied as a reason for why a hiring incentive for departments that who for whom their management is enforcing the vaccine mandate event. I mean I think that is what is partially creating the need for hiring incentives is to support the officers in one case and the one dispatchers in the other case who have complied and who are are still with the city, still performing public service and are working in departments that have large vacancies. So I really see the the allowance of of hiring incentives through the end of this year as really being part and parcel of supporting the enforcement of the vaccine mandate. Thank you. Thank you so much, Councilmember Herbold. Okay. With that debate is now closed on this particular agenda item. So will the clerk please call the role on the adoption of resolution 32027? Agenda item six. So want no. Strauss. Yes. HERBOLD. Yes. Whereas. Yes. LEWIS Yes. Morales Yes. Well, Sarah, I. Peterson I. Council president. Gonzalez, I Adan favor one opposed. Resolution is adopted and the chair will sign it. Will the group please fix my signature to the legislation on my behalf? Will Clark please read the title of item seven into the record. Agenda Item seven. Resolution 32028. A resolution concerning the health, well-being and safety of domestic workers, expressing council's intent to establish a right to portable paid