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Record of Proceedings

Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee Meeting - May 6, 2026

City Council — Wednesday, May 6, 2026
BodyPhoenix, Arizona
SessionCity Council
DateWednesday, May 6, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:08:35

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:32

Thank you.

0:33

Good morning.

0:35

I like to call this meeting order.

0:37

Welcome to the May 6, 2026 Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee.

0:43

I'd like to introduce City Attorney Alisa Blanford, Ms.

0:45

Blanford.

0:46

Please explain the role of public comment if you would, please.

0:50

Good morning.

0:51

Thank you, sir.

0:52

During citizen comment, members of the public may address the subcommittee for up to three minutes on issues of interest or concern to them.

1:00

The Arizona Open Meeting Law permits the subcommittee members to listen to the comments, but prohibits members from discussing or acting on the matters presented.

1:09

Members of the public may speak for up to two minutes to comment on agenda items to be discussed.

1:15

Comments must be related to the agenda item and the action being considered by the subcommittee.

1:20

The city council and staff cannot discuss or comment on matters related to pending investigation, claims, or litigation.

1:28

The city code requires speakers to present their comments in a respectful and courteous manner, profane language, threats, or personal attacks on members of the public, council members, or staff are not allowed.

1:40

A person who violates these rules will lose their opportunity to continue to speak.

1:45

Thank you.

1:46

Ms.

1:46

Blanford, thank you very much.

1:48

I'd like to introduce our interpreter, Elsie Duarte.

1:51

Ms.

1:51

Duarte, who she could you please provide a brief announcement.

1:55

Yes, thank you, Mr.

1:57

Chairman.

1:58

My name is Elsie Duarte, and I will be providing Spanish interpretation during today's public safety and justice subcommittee session.

2:06

I will now take a moment to address our Spanish speaking audience.

2:09

Buenos días, my number is Elsi Duarte.

2:40

Thank you, Mr.

2:41

Chairman.

2:42

Thank you, Miss Duarte.

2:43

We start the subcommittee meeting with a call to the public, and I do not believe we have anyone.

2:49

That being the case, thank you.

2:51

Okay, item number one is approval of the PSJ minutes from April 1st, 2026.

2:56

Do I have a motion?

2:58

Move to approve.

2:59

There's a motion and a second.

3:02

All those in favor say aye.

3:03

Aye.

3:04

Chair votes aye.

3:05

Passes unanimously.

3:06

Thank you very much for that.

3:07

Item number two is for consent.

3:10

And do any of my colleagues have any questions or comments for the annual block watch grant awards?

3:16

Chair, I do.

3:18

Councilwoman.

3:20

O'Brien.

3:23

I was gonna get there.

3:25

Sorry.

3:26

Interlocking out of your own error.

3:29

What's its topic?

3:30

No words.

3:30

Councilwoman O'Brien.

3:31

Thank you so much, Chair.

3:33

I appreciate it.

3:34

Um, and I do want to first uh thank the folks on um the Blackwatch Grant Committee for all of their incredible work that they do.

3:43

Um, I would like to request that we add a um to the list of approved items, item 26-155 for the requested amount of $15,000, and then item 26-058 in the amount of two thousand two hundred and seventy-seven dollars for lines.

4:08

Um, and what I did was took their budget and I numbered every line.

4:13

So for lines one through thirteen, twenty two, twenty-four through twenty six, and twenty-eight, um, for that to also be considered for approval today by the subcommittee.

4:30

Any additional questions?

4:34

So, Mr.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety█████████████████████████████████████████████87%
Procedural████7%
Personnel Matters███6%
Summary of Proceedings

Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee Meeting - May 6, 2026

The Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee met on May 6, 2026, starting at approximately 9:00 AM and adjourning at 11:09 AM. The meeting covered approval of prior minutes, consent agenda items, a detailed presentation on proposed fireworks ordinance revisions, and an update on police and fire recruitment and hiring. Unanimous votes were taken on consent items and to recommend the fireworks code changes to the full city council. No public comments were received.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes: The subcommittee unanimously approved the minutes from the April 1, 2026, meeting.
  • Block Watch Grant Awards: Councilwoman O'Brien moved to add two grants to the recommended list: item 26-155 for $15,000 and item 26-058 for $2,277 covering specific line items. The motion passed unanimously.

Discussion Items

Fireworks Ordinance Revision

  • Assistant Chief Justin Alexander, Police Lieutenant Brian Rimza, Deputy Parks Director Jared Rogers, and Deputy Communications Director Ashley Patton presented proposed revisions to Phoenix City Code Chapter 23, Article 2, Division 5. The new language would prohibit the sale and use of permissible consumer fireworks to the full extent allowed by state law (ARS 36-1606), which currently permits fireworks only around certain holidays.
  • Prohibited Areas: Permissible consumer fireworks will not be allowed within one mile of mountain preserves (shown in red on a map) and, during stage one fire restrictions, within one mile of other park properties (green and yellow areas). The city is developing an online tool to help residents determine if their address falls within these restricted zones, expected to be ready before July 4th.
  • Enforcement: Civil fines up to $2,500 and criminal penalties (class 1 misdemeanor, up to 6 months jail, $2,500 fine). The department intends to use civil fines for first-time violations and escalate for repeat offenders. Cost recovery provisions allow the city to charge for emergency response, storage, and destruction of illegal fireworks.
  • Public Awareness: The "Celebrate Safely" campaign will begin in early June using newsletters, social media, billboards, and community outreach. Subcommittee members asked about communication with neighborhood groups and park signage.
  • Outcome: The subcommittee unanimously voted to recommend the ordinance revision to the full city council for consideration at the May 20, 2026, meeting.

Police and Fire Hiring and Recruitment Update

  • Fire Department (Assistant Chief Rita Riddle Bigler): Authorized sworn positions are 2,059, including 134 funded by the TPT increase. Thirty-four of those are already in operations. Sixty-one recruits are on track to graduate May 15, and 50 new hires are on-boarding for a June start. Online testing in August 2025 and January 2026 yielded 134 out-of-state applicants from 24 states with a 74% completion rate. The cadet program (55–75 active cadets) continues to supply roughly 25 candidates per hiring cycle.
  • Police Department (Assistant Director Kurt Courthood): Authorized positions are 3,125; as of February 2026, filled sworn positions totaled 2,460, with 126 recruits in the academy (the most in any February for at least three years). In the first two months of 2026, 933 applications were received. Of the 26 recruits hired in 2026, 19 remain in the academy and 7 have separated. Recruitment efforts include national outreach, online testing, partnerships with universities, and events targeting women. A joint Police-Fire Career Experience on March 7 attracted over 500 attendees and resulted in 16 on-site police recruit applications.
  • Discussion: Councilmember Waring expressed concern about the declining number of sworn officers (2,460), noting it is far below the authorized target and has not improved significantly. Councilwoman O'Brien pointed to the hiring freeze from 2007–2012 as a contributing factor to a gap in mid-career officers. Subcommittee members requested future reports on attrition rates, applicant pipeline data, the effectiveness of the $2,500 referral bonus, and longer-term staffing trends. The police department highlighted ongoing process improvements to speed up hiring, including using online interviews for out-of-state candidates.

Key Outcomes

  • Unanimous approval of consent calendar items including block watch grants with Councilwoman O'Brien's additions.
  • Unanimous vote to recommend the fireworks ordinance revision to the full city council for the May 20, 2026, meeting.
  • Presentations on hiring and recruitment were received for information. No formal action was taken, but the subcommittee directed staff to provide follow-up data on police academy attrition, retention rates, applicant funnel analysis, referral bonus usage, and historical staffing levels in future briefings.

Meeting Transcript

Thank you. Good morning. I like to call this meeting order. Welcome to the May 6, 2026 Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee. I'd like to introduce City Attorney Alisa Blanford, Ms. Blanford. Please explain the role of public comment if you would, please. Good morning. Thank you, sir. During citizen comment, members of the public may address the subcommittee for up to three minutes on issues of interest or concern to them. The Arizona Open Meeting Law permits the subcommittee members to listen to the comments, but prohibits members from discussing or acting on the matters presented. Members of the public may speak for up to two minutes to comment on agenda items to be discussed. Comments must be related to the agenda item and the action being considered by the subcommittee. The city council and staff cannot discuss or comment on matters related to pending investigation, claims, or litigation. The city code requires speakers to present their comments in a respectful and courteous manner, profane language, threats, or personal attacks on members of the public, council members, or staff are not allowed. A person who violates these rules will lose their opportunity to continue to speak. Thank you. Ms. Blanford, thank you very much. I'd like to introduce our interpreter, Elsie Duarte. Ms. Duarte, who she could you please provide a brief announcement. Yes, thank you, Mr. Chairman. My name is Elsie Duarte, and I will be providing Spanish interpretation during today's public safety and justice subcommittee session. I will now take a moment to address our Spanish speaking audience. Buenos días, my number is Elsi Duarte. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Miss Duarte. We start the subcommittee meeting with a call to the public, and I do not believe we have anyone. That being the case, thank you. Okay, item number one is approval of the PSJ minutes from April 1st, 2026. Do I have a motion? Move to approve. There's a motion and a second. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Chair votes aye. Passes unanimously. Thank you very much for that. Item number two is for consent. And do any of my colleagues have any questions or comments for the annual block watch grant awards? Chair, I do. Councilwoman. O'Brien. I was gonna get there. Sorry. Interlocking out of your own error. What's its topic?

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