Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley and former City Manager Patrick Duhaney (Duhaney has since taken a job as the city manager of Virginia Beach and former City Solicitor Paula Boggs Muething has been approved as Cincinnati's interim city manager) have proposed a new budget for the city, and Cincinnati City Council must approve it by June 30 ahead of the first day of the new fiscal year July 1.
Due to increased interest in how this year's budget is being divvied up — specifically the portion being spent on police — the City of Cincinnati and council's Budget and Finance Committee originally added a third public input session for residents and increased the hours for the other two previously scheduled sessions, with the third session scheduled from noon until possibly midnight on Friday, June 19.
That event has since been canceled.
"While we are facing some very difficult conversations as a city right now, I have been heartened by the passionate engagement that members of our community have had with the Budget and Finance Committee, and I am deeply grateful for it," said council member David Mann, chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, in a statement on Twitter.
"The first Public Budget Hearing of 2020 on Tuesday, June 16th went very smoothly, moreso than anyone anticipated. Our next scheduled hearing is (today), June 18th, and it is scheduled to take place from 4:00PM until midnight, or until everyone has been heard."
Mann added that he wanted to make sure everyone is able to celebrate Juneteenth on Friday.
The final hearing will be held tonight, Thursday, June 18 from 4 p.m. until midnight or later at the Duke Energy Convention Center and via Zoom. Doors open at 3 p.m. Chairs have been set up to allow 300 people inside the convention center, according to a release.
Residents can show up in person and sign up to speak for two minutes. No pre-registration is required to speak in person — you just need to fill out a speaker card when you get there. If you wanted to submit comments via audio or video, an online form to do so was due yesterday. Residents can also email the mayor, city manager and council members with their feedback.
The public can view the meeting at cincinnati-oh.gov/citicable.
After careful consideration, as the Chair of Cincinnati's Budget and Finance Committee, I have decided that it is not necessary to hold a third Public Budget Hearing on Friday, June 19th. pic.twitter.com/I4G2UnPA2q
— David Mann (@mannforcincy) June 17, 2020