SAFETY FORCES Mayor seeks renewal of income tax in Aug.

The mayor contends a special election isn't a ploy to sneak the tax past voters.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Fires that claimed three lives in the past three weeks and a traffic fatality over the weekend show the need for voters to renew the 0.5 percent income tax for the safety forces, Mayor Michael J. O'Brien said.
The police and fire departments responded to those calls quickly, the mayor said at a news conference Monday afternoon.
"Response time is important to the police and fire levy," he said.
Two people died in a fire at an Ohio Avenue home last month, and a Porter Street man died in a blaze at his home early Monday. A 10-year-old was struck and killed by a car Sunday afternoon.
Legislation before city council Wednesday would place the income tax on the Aug. 3 special election ballot. The tax, initially passed in 2001, expires at the end of this year and generates about $5 million annually.
Voters rejected the renewal in March. If passed, the tax would run from Jan. 1, 2005, through Dec. 31, 2007.
"We cannot jeopardize the safety of our citizens and the safety of our safety forces," O'Brien said.
It's important to try for passage in August rather than waiting until November so that the city knows how much money it will have for the next year, he said.
What it will cost
Calling a news conference to announce the tax shows that the special election route isn't a way to sneak it past voters, according to O'Brien.
A special election would cost the city about $29,000.
"That's a small price to pay to ensure citizens' safety, employee safety, and it's a small price to pay to save someone's life," the mayor said.
The police department has initiated community policing and undergone training -- from the chief through department secretaries, he said.
"We have a more professional police department than in years past," O'Brien said.
Councilman James A. Pugh, D-6th, said more change is needed. Some members of the police department have been accused of illegal strip-searches and brutality in recent months, Pugh noted.
Pugh said he doesn't blame O'Brien's administration for allegations that surfaced during the previous administration, but he wants the administration to call for an investigation by the U.S. Justice Department's Criminal Division into the allegations of civil rights violations.
"Until those issues are addressed, I don't think I can support it," Pugh said.
denise_dick@vindy.com