93.9 The Eagle – The News and Talk of Columbia, MO
Columbia’s police and fire chiefs are hoping to receive some of the $25 million in federal funding that the city is expected to receive from a stimulus package approved by Congress this year.
The chiefs met with the city council on Thursday, hoping to get money for staffing. ABC-17 KMIZ quotes Columbia’s assistant police chief, Jeremiah Hunter, as saying the department has seen a drop in new applicants and a staffing shortage that has caused many of its officers to work 12-hour shifts.
Mayor Brian Treece hopes federal stimulus funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) will help recruit and retain police officers, firefighters and trash collectors. The mayor notes those three groups could not work from home during the past 18 months.
