Mayor outlines new budget, which allows for new HPD positions

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Honolulu’s police chief is looking forward to expanding the force after the mayor offered more money in his proposed city budget.

In a plan sent to the council Tuesday, Mayor Caldwell is proposing about $3 billion in spending next year, which equate to a 5 percent increase. It does not call for higher taxes, and offers about $71 million for the first six months of rail service.

The budget re-allocates money for about 100 new positions in the police department. Those positions HPD says will make a big difference in keeping the community safe.

“It’s also for footbeats in Waikiki, footbeats in Chinatown, footbeats in Kailua, detective positions because we need to build up our cyber crime unit, our elder fraud elder abuse unit,” HPD Police Chief Susan Ballard said.

City officials also said Honolulu’s rail project will be getting commuters off the road and partially on the move by December, in addition to tightly coordinated bus routes.

Honolulu’s City Council will hold public hearings and must approve a budget and tax rates before it takes effect on July 1.