Residents express mixed opinions on proposed MPD contract – The Minnesota Daily

More than 30 Minneapolis residents expressed mixed opinions Monday about the proposed contract with the Minneapolis Police Department, which includes: historic salary increase of 21.7% over three years.

A Minneapolis City Council subcommittee held its last of two opportunities for public comment on the proposed MPD contract on July 8. The City Council will vote on it on July 18.

The meeting saw mixed opinions on the contract. Participants shared their experiences with MPD and expressed their opinions for or against the proposed contract.

Some residents, like Anne Nelson, voiced support for the contract. Nelson, one of about six people wearing orange neighborhood safety shirts, said aspects of the contract, such as higher wages, would help the city improve public safety.

“We need to hire and retain current police officers so that everyone can feel safe in their neighborhood,” Nelson said.

The proposed contract calls for a 21.7% salary increase over three years, resulting in a starting salary of more than $90,000 by July 2025. In a presentation before the public comment period, city Superintendent Margaret Anderson Kelliher said the increase will make Minneapolis “more competitive” in recruiting new officers.

“We want to attract and retain (officials),” Kelliher said.

In the presentation, Kelliher discussed other important aspects of the contract, such as greater flexibility in staffing and keeping the identities of people who submit public records requests about officials confidential.

In addition to the city’s presentation, Communities United Against Police Brutality President Michelle Gross spoke to the committee about her opposition to the proposed contract. Gross said the contract does not guarantee officers the level of accountability that would justify a large pay raise.

“If you want the money, you have to agree to take responsibility,” Gross said. “Behavior comes first, raises come second.”

Other residents raised similar concerns. Minneapolis resident Naomi Wilson called the competitive pay raise a “logical fallacy.” Wilson said she has witnessed police brutality and inappropriate behavior by the Los Angeles Police Department and does not believe higher pay leads to better policing.

“With this contract, the MPD is about on par (in terms of pay) with the LAPD,” ​​Wilson said. “The LAPD is one of the most murderous police forces in the country.”

In August 2023 Los Angeles approved a police contract which gave LAPD officers a starting salary of around $94,000 through 2027.

Minneapolis resident Noah Schumacher said the raise brings neither security nor “real accountability” to Minneapolis.

“Many have shared personal experiences,” Schumacher said. “I too have been robbed, attacked and shot at – and that was before 2020, when the police were at full strength.”

When the city introduced the contract, City Attorney Kristyn Anderson said contracts are “generally not the right place for reform” and should be addressed in places that do not require negotiations with the police union.

Instead, reforms should be carried out at agencies like the Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR), Anderson said.

Council Member LaTrisha Vetaw (Ward 4) said if reforms were written into the contract, there would be no room for necessary policy changes.

Gross said the MDHR and the Justice Department are not a substitute for reforms set out in the treaty and that the treaty must be renegotiated.

“It’s more important to do it right than to do it fast,” Gross said.