Resident questions police fleet spending; staff says funds come from sale of retired vehicles

A resident at the St. Joseph City Council meeting on May 30 questioned the city's approach to police fleet funding and whether purchasing additional vehicles or using general funds was appropriate while the department faces staffing shortages.

Guillermo Pena, a resident who spoke during the police-budget item, said he had seen police activity but observed the city appeared to be buying more vehicles than it had officers to staff them. "If we're gonna do this and take money from the general fund, why do we need 27 more cars?" Pena asked, and he urged the council to consider raising pay to retain officers rather than increasing fleet size.

City staff responded that the ordinance before council to amend the police department budget concerned proceeds from sales of retired vehicles. "These are proceeds from the sale of cars that have been retired," staff said. "The proceeds of those sales will go back into the maintenance fund for the police department." The clarification indicated the specific line-item funding discussed was sale proceeds earmarked for maintenance and repair of fleet vehicles rather than an ARPA allocation.

The council approved the item by an 8-0 vote. The transcript does not show a council commitment to change compensation or staffing levels; the action recorded in the meeting was limited to accepting and directing the proceeds into the maintenance fund.