On February 2, 2026, the Cleveland City Council convened to consider several emergency ordinances and legislation, including the final passage of "Tanisha's Law" to establish a Bureau of Community Crisis Response, various public safety grants, waste management infrastructure updates, marina fee amendments, and a comprehensive management training program. The meeting featured significant discussion on the necessity of administrative training for 700+ supervisors and the economic state of the Flats East Bank, resulting in the approval of most items pending committee referrals for the training ordinance due to budget transparency concerns.
Tanisha's Law (Bureau of Community Crisis Response):
VAWA Grants (Ordinance 26-2026):
Management Training Program (Ordinance 29-2026):
Flats East Bank (Ordinance 1541-2025):
Waste Collection (Ordinance 33-2026):
Michael Anderson, along with many family members, he worked with a group of case West Preserve University Law Stud, which was the first version of Tunisia's law that was presented to this body in November of 2024. From that point to now, um, when you start off to what you have in front of you is a piece of legislation which will create uh the Bureau of Um response, which will be housed in the division of EMS with Commissioner Wheeler, under the leadership within public safety, with Director Drummond, and um from that point, um this legislation creates a position of a deputy commissioner of community crisis who will then be tasked once hired to build out this division where we will have um unarmed crisis professionals that will be utilized as we know the fourth option currently when people call 911, inspire EMS, police fire EMS. Uh we were going through the process to create a fourth option, which um we have yet to title what that fourth option will be, but the new deputy commissioner uh will do that. Um as part of that you will find that there are a minimum of some training standards for uh our current uh first responders, um, as well as creating a path for mental health professionals as well as um peer specialists, those with lived experiences from I will say the multitude of behavior health and mental health. Um lived experience to get training to hopefully uh then be able to provide care if it is deemed necessary. Um that's basically what you have in front of you all. Um there were a multitude of professionals that have gotten us to this point, and as we look to hopefully pass this legislation, um our community stakeholders will be working in partnership with um uh the team in EMS, uh, specifically in the Bureau of Community Crisis Response to ensure that the vision that we have laid out is actually carried out with fulfilled. First of all, thank you, uh Councilwoman and great work. I know that this was um uh labor of love that you want to take on. I want to take a moment if I can. I believe that a couple of members of uh this and family are here. I didn't think any other family members are here. Okay, so they'll be here later tonight. Okay. I just wanted to make sure that we acknowledge them. Um I do want to hear from council and drumming and then uh any remarks from the chair of the same chair to our council members. Thank you for giving out to come relative to Tisha's law. Um we've had in hand with uh the council members. Um specifically uh council member House Jones and uh tomorrow uh assistant director Shaq to come up with this legislation. Uh and uh working hand in hand uh to make sure that uh the best possible work is together. We we have this cooperative uh both uh administration the council members want to get this uh to the finish line. Thank you. Uh I'm gonna ask any remarks from uh councilman Michael Belissy, the chair of public safety. Thank you, uh Mr. Chairman by the colleagues and to the uh members of the administration to my colleagues Stephanie House Joseph. Um here is a classic case, Mr. Chairman. We're always believed that reasonable people can come up with reasonable solutions. We went into this with the administration opposed to it, uh, what was being proposed by and the mayor post to it um uh by being proposed by the prime sponsors, but through negotiations through dialogue through sitting down and coming to understand each person to each side's um concerns and issues, we were able to come up with the piece of legislation is before us today. So again, um, and I say that especially for the viewing public, because we live in a world today, as we see in Washington, especially in Washington, where there was no compromise, there is no meeting middle ground, coming to middle ground. It's just an adversarial relationship. But I'm glad to say, and I'm proud to say that uh through the efforts of both the sponsors and the administration, and then which came before the safety committee, we're able to effectively put forth a piece of legislation, which again will take time to implement. We all understand that, but I believe we're on the right path and right course in dealing with this issue that we've been confronted with from our first responders. So again, I want to commend everybody who was involved in the process. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I wholeheartedly support it, and I hope all the other members of the safety committee, including myself, which who asked to be added, were put onto the piece. Thank you, Councilman. Councilman Brian Casey, thank you, Mr. Chairman. You know, Mr. Chairman, as council members, we're not supposed to be human, and we're not supposed to put emotions into things. But it's no surprise or it's no shock to anybody that I'm a father with a daughter who has a developmental disability. And I wear that with the with the badge of honor. And I didn't want to get involved with Tanisha's law because I felt that I would be too emotional in the process. And I didn't think that that would be fair to the people who were trying to put this together. But I sympathize immensely with with the Anderson family. And when I keep going over that case, I could just imagine, and everybody at this table has met my daughter, right? And you I don't think anybody could imagine Brianna going through something like Tanisha did. The hard work and dedication and and councilwoman House Jones, we don't always see eye to eye.