In Youngstown, the police department and city officials met to discuss this year's budget at a Thursday budget hearing.  

The department is requesting more money for its travel and advertising department. The council is listening in on what the budget consists of this year before the numbers head to the finance committee for review. 

The city's uniform budget is sitting at just under $1 million dollars. The total payroll budget for the chief, captains, lieutenants, detectives, patrol officers, and cadets lands at $8,470,093.

The department is budgeting $3 million for the department's overtime. In 2023, the department spent $2,918,190.

The department's travel costs are increasing from $14,000 to $60,000. It's a price tag council members including Anita Davis are leery of. The department also wants to increase spending on advertising from $1,700 to $10,000.

A miscellaneous expense of $48,000 will cover cadet training at Youngstown State University.

Leaders in the department say officers' guns are about 10-15 years old and they could soon need to be replaced. They're also requesting a handful of new cars for the department.

Chief Davis told 21 News the department is still considering installing flock camera systems around town, which read license plates and trace vehicles tied to crime. He said the cameras are not on the horizon for 2024 but they're still on his mind.

The city is also looking to add more staff to its 911 call center.

The drafted budget will soon head to the finance committee before the council as a whole review.