Canton, Massachusetts · Saved source text
FINCOM 20210210 Minutes
Saved text from 1 of 7 source pages. Transcription and OCR may contain errors; verify figures and wording against the original.
Source page 1
Canton Finance Committee Minutes Voted on: 2/24/21 801 Washington Street Vote: 7-0-0 Canton, MA 02021 Meeting Minutes February 10, 2021 Finance Committee Members Present: David Clough, Dan Cole, Emilio Mauro, Tim McKenna, Reuki Schutt, Tom Theodore, Cindy Thomas and Wai Wong. Finance Committee Members Absent: Rob Barker. Guests Present: Ken Berkowitz, Police Chief Charlie Doody, Fire Chief Ellen Jones, Finance Committee Secretary Helena Rafferty, Deputy Police Chief Randy Scollins, Finance Director Opening: Chair McKenna called the virtual meeting via Zoom to order at 7:00 p.m. Approval of Agenda: Chair McKenna reviewed the agenda. New Business Police Department (#210) and Animal Control (#292) FY22 Budqet Requests — Discussion with Police Chief Ken Berkowitz and Deputy Police Chief Helena Rafferty Chief Berkowitz addressed the recently passed Police Reform containing 25 Action Items that the Town must complete by July 1, 2021. The Lieutenants will be writing new policies on what the Town has to legally, morally and ethically do and what will be best for the community. Chief Berkowitz has divided the 25 actions items among his four Lieutenants for completion by July 1. • Chief Berkowitz is requesting a Police Department budget increase of $117,162 for FY22. • The Chief is requesting $111,836 in the Lieutenant's Salary budget line item (#12101-51171) to increase the number of lieutenants in the department from three to four. This position would likely be filled by a present employee with 20 years of experience in the Department. The base salary for this fourth position is $111,836. • $5,326 requested for the FY22 budget will be for the increase to the salary of Lt. Rae for earning his 20 years of service. • Chief Berkowitz is also requesting $80,000 for Police Reform -related training (overtime). The Chief estimates that 20-24 hours of training per officer will be needed regarding the new policies and changes. In response to Mr. Mauro's inquiry if there would be any state funding for implementing these new policies, Chief Berkowitz stated that these are all unfunded state mandates and that the Massachusetts Municipal Association (MMA) and the Massachusetts Police Association have been lobbying for funding but that he doubts any funding will come through. Chief Berkowitz stated that the required implementation date of July 1, 2021 could be delayed as the state infrastructure as not been set up, nor has the state established a Commission that will oversee the police reforms. At the present time Canton has been certified and accredited for 30 years and is 34 in the state. The new police reform does not require body cameras. Chief Berkowitz stated that he had requested body cameras six years ago but officers are not required to use them. Any city or town could require the use of body cameras if they have an adopted policy. He further stated that there are cameras in the police station including intake and booking areas. The cameras in the police cruisers record traffic stops. Most everything is videotaped except when officers are required to enter in a house but with today's environment there is usually someone with a phone videotaping. • There is no budget increase requested for FY22 for the Animal Control budget (#292) even though Animal Control is in need of a new van. They will be using the donations fund for this purchase. The COVID FINCOM 20210210 Minutes.docx Page 1 of 7 2/15/21