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Ordinance amending Ordinance Number 25 of 2020, effective July 31, 2020, titled, “Ordinance supplementing the Pittsburgh Code of Ordinances, Title Two--Fiscal, Article V-Special Funds, to add a new Chapter, Chapter 237 - “STOP THE VIOLENCE FUND”, to prioritize the prevention of violence and crime within communities and to create a budgetary obligation for the Fund.”, by changing language.
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Whereas, various public health crises, including institutional racism and the spread of COVID-19 are creating havoc in our daily lives by distressing our communities, workplaces, and our governments’ ability to protect and prioritize the health of the public in general and people of color in particular; and,
Whereas, with any public health crisis, the strategy and response must address the current realities as well as prepare for additional challenges in the future; and,
Whereas, across the United States, cities and states are establishing task forces, response teams, and oversight entities to guide communities through current public health crisis by reviewing data, developing recommendations and strategies to address current and future health disparities; and,
Whereas, a public health approach to public safety includes addressing the total needs of the people and their communities; and,
Whereas, promoting the health of distressed populations requires the use of the social determinants of health and collaborations with community, social services and public health agencies; and,
Whereas, community health needs assessments can provide the impetus for a holistic approach to monitor and support the important social determinants of health; and,
Whereas, a public health approach focused on effectively targeting interventions is an effective use of resources since they match needs with services; and,
Whereas, modern public health practitioners are merging community needs identification and intervention with the social worker’s priority of supplying the needs of the individual; and,
Whereas, the City of Pittsburgh recognizes the history of racism in our country and how it has led to many current-day disparities in education, health, safety, job attainment, income, wealth, housing, healthcare, disproportionate incarceration rates for people of color and other pernicious systems of injustice; and,
Whereas, on December 23, 2019, the Honorable William M. Peduto, Mayor of the City of Pittsburgh, signed into law Resolution Number 843 of 2019, declaring racism a “public health crisis” in the City of Pittsburgh, a home rule municipality and political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH HEREBY ENACTS AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1: The Pittsburgh Code, Title Two--Fiscal, Article V--Special Funds, Chapter 237, “STOP the Violence Fund”, is hereby amended as follows:
§ 237.01 Definitions.
a. Social service program - As defined by this subsection, an [non-governmental] agency which provides intervention, mediation, violence prevention or necessary supportive services which aid in reducing criminal activity by at-risk populations in the City, and when appropriate, surrounding communities;
b. City Council finds that financially supporting [non-governmental] programs and social service programs that prevent violence and criminal activity in the City of Pittsburgh is an express public purpose, one which more than justifies the use of the City’s public moneys;
§ 237.02 Establishment of the STOP THE VIOLENCE Fund
(a) The STOP THE VIOLENCE FUND (“Fund”) shall be created by the Office of Management and Budget as a separate fund for the purpose of supporting [non-governmental] services and programs that prevent violence and criminal activities. The City may appropriate revenue and the Fund may receive monies from other sources as deemed appropriate by the Office of Equity or other Department as designated by the Mayor, consistent with the purposes set forth in this Chapter.
(b) It is the intent of the City Council that a fully capitalized Fund have allocated to it an amount equal to no less than ten percent of the total annual City budget allocation, of all funding sources and line-items, not inclusive of federal grants awarded, of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, on the following schedule:
Budget Year 2021: Five Percent (5%);
Budget Year 2022: Six Percent (6%);
Budget Year 2023: Seven Percent (7%);
Budget Year 2024: Eight Percent (8%);
Budget Year 2025: Nine Percent (9%);
Budget Year 2026 (and thereafter): Ten Percent (10%)
(c) This allocation shall not be subject to, after the passage of the Annual Budget, to adjustment on the grounds of post-Budget reductions to the Bureau of Police.
(d) It is the intention of the City Council that the Fund be used exclusively for the purposes set forth in this Chapter. Therefore, any assets remaining in the Fund at the end of any fiscal year shall be carried into the next fiscal year, including all interest and income earned, as well as any repayments or forfeitures of expenditures and/or grants.
(e) The Stop The Violence Steering Committee shall advise in the selection and distribution of funding to community health and safety [violence prevention] programs.
§ 237.03 Effective Date. This Chapter shall become effective upon enactment.
Section 2. The City Controller is authorized and directed to create a special trust fund to be entitled the “STOP THE VIOLENCE TRUST FUND” for the purpose of accepting and depositing funds from internal and external sources and the expenditure of those funds for related expenses including, but not limited to, salaries, supplies, materials, professional services, equipment and other services in connection with the City of Pittsburgh’s [Group Violence Prevention Initiative.] Office of Community Health and Safety.
Section 3. The Office of Management and Budget, or other such departments as designated by the Mayor, are hereby authorized to provide for the payment of expenses for the purposes outlined herein.