
Protesters rally Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in Phoenix, demanding that the Phoenix City Council defund the Phoenix Police Department. The protest is a result of the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. (AP Photo/Matt York)
The vote was rescheduled after more than 600 people spent hours 110-degree weather to demand police accountability.
Phoenix City Council rescheduled Wednesday’s budget vote to Monday after councilmembers failed to pass any of the three motions on the table during a six-hour meeting Wednesday.
The Council heard hours of public comment calling for them to slash police funding by 25% and give more funding to civilian oversight and community programs. Many of the participants called in from a rally outside of City Hall, where more than 600 people gathered in 110-degree weather to demand concrete steps toward police accountability.
Supporters say the Community Review Board and the Office of Accountability and Transparency, approved in February, will require $3 million. The city only allocated $400,000 to the groups, saying it’s enough to get them started while Phoenix deals with budget shortfalls as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Activists denounced this explanation, saying if the city could find room for a $25 million increase to the police, they should be able to find $2.5 million more for oversight.
RELATED: Activists Call for Phoenix to Defund Police, Give More Money to Oversight Amid Protests
Councilman Carlos Garcia attempted to meet these demands, motioning for the Council to move $2.5 million from the city’s contingency fund to the oversight groups. But the motion failed after the deputy city manager expressed concerns over an already low contingency fund and the possibility of creditors downgrading the city’s bond rating if it didn’t quickly replenish those funds.
A motion to approve the budget as is, as well as one to approve as is but direct any year-end savings to be put into the oversight programs, also failed by close votes of 4-5.
The Council decided to continue the vote to Monday at 11 a.m., when they will resume discussion but not hear any more testimony from the public.
Garcia said the Council “failed” its constituents after taking no action despite receiving over 2,000 public comments largely in favor of committing more money to oversight.
“Police violence has been an issue across the country and in Phoenix for too long and historically has affected Black people the most,” he said in a statement. “Postponing on this issue ignores the needs of our community.”
RELATED: This Is What It Means to Defund the Police
The rally outside of City Hall led into other gatherings throughout downtown Phoenix, marking the seventh consecutive day of protests in the city sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Wednesday was the third night in a row of protesters complying with Gov. Doug Ducey’s 8 p.m. curfew and police making no arrests.
Support Our Cause
Thank you for taking the time to read our work. Before you go, we hope you'll consider supporting our values-driven journalism, which has always strived to make clear what's really at stake for Arizonans and our future.
Since day one, our goal here at The Copper Courier has always been to empower people across the state with fact-based news and information. We believe that when people are armed with knowledge about what's happening in their local, state, and federal governments—including who is working on their behalf and who is actively trying to block efforts aimed at improving the daily lives of Arizona families—they will be inspired to become civically engaged.


BREAKING: AG Kris Mayes sues rental corporations for conspiratorial price-fixing
It looks like, legally speaking, rent really may be “too damn high.” Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced Wednesday a lawsuit against nine...

Op-ed: Trump’s journey from hosting The Apprentice to being the biggest loser
Leading up to the 2016 election, Donald Trump crafted an image of himself as a successful businessman and a winner. But in reality, Trump has a long...

Kari Lake’s plan for the US Senate: ‘The end of democracy’
The world’s most far-right political leaders flocked to National Harbor, Maryland, last week for a conservative conference where attendants idolized...

Flight attendants picket at more than 30 airports in ‘unprecedented’ show of solidarity
Hundreds of flight attendants picketed at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport last week, calling attention to stagnant wages with low purchasing power, poor...