After several hours of discussion Friday and two vetoes by the mayor, the ballot language is set for the upcoming election in Minneapolis regarding the public safety department proposal.
The new language asks voters if the city should “strike and replace its police department,” removes a reference to a “comprehensive public safety approach” and describes the proposed department’s administrative authority as “consistent with other city departments.” The full text follows:
"Shall the Minneapolis City Charter be amended to strike and replace the Police Department with a Department of Public Safety which could include licensed peace officers (police officers) if necessary, with administrative authority to be consistent with other city departments to fulfill its responsibilities for public safety?"
Councilmember Andrew Johnson was among nine “yes” votes.
“(We did) as best a job as we can coming up with neutral language that helps capture the essence of the amendment in a fair and neutral way,” he said.
In a third session Friday, the council secured the votes to override Mayor Jacob Frey’s second veto fewer than six hours before the ballot language deadline. Frey was strongly critical of the council’s vote, emphasizing that facts about the proposal, such as the removal of the chief’s title and the minimum number of police officers, should be included on the ballot.
“We could have clearly stated that the head of public safety would have a dual reporting structure both to the mayor and to 13 councilmembers, instead I believe they tried to hide the ball,” Frey said.
Frey said he does support a new public safety model and agrees with some elements of the amendment. He was not able to say whether he would campaign against the ballot proposal because he was speaking as mayor at City Hall.