Additional Police Officers

At a glance

What: Proposals to add police officers in the FY 2027 budget, either 10 San Antonio Fear Free Environment (SAFFE) officers (one per district) or patrol officers for the Northside Substation.
Where it stands: All three floor amendments failed or were withdrawn on September 17, 2026; no officers were added beyond the City Manager's budget.
Next: Viagran asked that the question be revisited in FY 2028 after the new Police Chief and the new collective bargaining agreement have been tested for a year.

SAFFE list item: 10 officers at $1.7 million in FY 2027 and $1.6 million in FY 2028, one per district (September 16 staff list). Whyte and Spears supported 10 officers, with Whyte proposing a $50,000 cut to each district office to pay for them.
September 17 amendments: Whyte's Amendment 1 ($1.6 million for 10 SAFFE officers from alarm fees and planning cuts) failed 2-9; Spears's Amendment 2 (10 patrol officers, $1,157,618) failed 2-9; Amendment 3 (two Northside Substation officers, $320,000 from District 9 and 10 office budgets) was withdrawn.

McKee-Rodriguez, Viagran, Kaur and Castillo did not support new SAFFE officers: the costs recur annually, the idea was not evaluated through the comprehensive budget reviews, and Salame said on September 16 that SAFFE officers would not improve call response times. Viagran asked for an audit of SAPD overtime first. Kaur suggested two or three officers for the northside only.
Galvan noted 200 new officer positions were added over three years and 370 transferred to SAPD, and that the SAPD budget grew $40 million this year.
Segovia: the Police Chief decides where officers are assigned, so funded positions might not stay at the Northside Substation. Salame said service areas overlap districts and he committed to work with District 9 on a traffic enforcement plan.

Villagomez said salary, equipment and benefits for one officer were included in a $160,000 cost; Mungia asked whether raises or overtime would also come from the District 9 and 10 budgets and was told that was not part of the amendment.
McKee-Rodriguez suggested two council districts could remove positions from their office budgets to create patrol officers for the Northside substation. Walsh said the money would come from Districts 9 and 10 in perpetuity and a future Council would need to approve adding office positions back.
Viagran asked whether the districts had vacancies so no one in the Local Government Corporation would be laid off, and said the decision belonged to the full Council and the Chief. Spears said she had a vacancy and Whyte said he could manage.
Salame said he had not done the analysis on whether the Northside substation needs two more officers.

Amendments 1 and 2 failed 2-9; Amendment 3 withdrawn.

Most members opposed adding SAFFE officers and wanted the money for Library, Metro Health, sustainability and agency funding instead.

Whyte and Spears presented reduction lists to fund 10 SAFFE officers.