Oklahoma City Police presents proposed budget to City Council

Oklahoma City is nearing an upcoming deadline for the next fiscal year. Citywide, departments were instructed to propose reductions. 

The police department has proposed a budget representing an increase from the prior year of 4.19%. The overall proposed budget for the next fiscal year for the Oklahoma City Police is $297,951,282. 

The portion that comes from the city’s general fund is projected to increase by 2.41%. 

Yet, the proposed budget includes the freezing of 20 vacant officer positions. Mark Nelson, president of the Oklahoma City Fraternal Order of Police, commented on the proposed freeze earlier in May to News 9. He said the department already faces an understaffing issue while on the brink of playing host to a full slate of world events. 

Department Chief Ron Bacy shared a similar sentiment on Tuesday during his presentation. 

"It's a really big lift and it's going to require a lot of coordination,” Bacy said, mentioning the 2028 Olympics and a chance to be a FIFA 2026 basecamp city. 

He continued, focusing on future funding opportunities, saying, “and we have a great partnership with our federal partnerships and the other metro agencies that are willing to kick in. But the real-time information center is a game changer in how we keep people safe. And we absolutely will need more resources as we move forward." 

Several people spoke during public comment, criticizing the budget proposals for not representing citizen input. 

City staff said it received 19 public comments leading into Tuesday’s council meeting. Three comments were related to public safety. 

City Council is expected to vote on the final budget on June 3.