DULUTH, MN (CBS-3) – Several Duluth city councilors and other city officials proposed a big budget amendment during a news conference at City Hall on Thursday.
The amendment includes a 15 percent increase in Police Department wages.
According to a recent state auditor report, Duluth’s police department ranks last in the state of Minnesota in wages paid.
Also included in the proposal is a hundred thousand dollars annually for Police and Fire Department training and 600 thousand dollars for a community crisis response team.
The budget amendment would make structural changes in the city’s healthcare plans by slightly increasing wages for city workers and upping their healthcare costs.
That would prevent further problems down the line when healthcare plans could account for all of the City’s budget.
On Monday, the council will be voting on a maximum property tax levy and will have until December to finalize a 2022 budget.
