The Austintown Police Department is beginning to struggle following the failure of a police levy on the November 2024 ballot.

The levy was placed on the November 2024 ballot and asked for an additional 2.4 mills to fund police vehicles, technology equipment, building costs and salaries for the department.

Had this levy passed, it would have generated over $2 million for the police department.

Township Trustee Robert Santos said while the levy was on the ballot, trustees aimed to be transparent about where residents' tax dollars would go and outlined what this levy would do for the department and what cuts would happen if it didn't pass.

However, the residents have spoken and the levy failed by 728 votes. 

Austintown Township Mark D'Apolito put options on the table in a meeting Tuesday afternoon to help cut costs throughout all Austintown departments.

It's projected in 2025 that $3.4 million will be used from the general fund for various needs, which is $1.4 million more than what's generated. 

The zoning, parks and Police Department all rely on the general fund. With the Police needing a large portion of the fund, the department is taking cost reduction measures.

As it stands, the township is paying an average of $40 per call for dispatch, and is attempting to mitigate this increase by raising costs for other agencies to use the dispatch center.

“We did a cost analysis, found out that all of these townships are underpaying substantially, and we are in negotiations with them to get a fair share contract,” said Bruce Shepas, Austintown trustee chairman.

In the meantime, outgoing Police Chief Bob Gavalier says the department is still trying to keep minimum staffing, but is cutting back on overtime. 

Gavalier added that the department will still give quality service, but response times could take longer.

Shepas said the township is taking steps to prevent the budget problem from getting worse.

“Some cuts as far as like with expenditures and not buying new cruisers. We're being very proactive to prevent any type of catastrophic changes to our police department in the future. So we're taking those steps now,” said Shepas.

D'Apolito said voters will see another levy for the general fund.

“So on the ballot on the primary will be a general fund renewal. That levy comes due every five years. That's critical to us treading water where we are right now,” said D'Apolito.

Whether the police levy will be put back on the ballot, is still in discussion.

Santos previously told 21 News in December that the failed levy will not reappear on the 2025 ballot. He adds that trustees are looking at the budget every day and how to best use taxpayer dollars.