Austintown police levy heads to November ballot after unanimous vote

Austintown Township is once again turning to voters to help stabilize its police department. On Monday, trustees unanimously approved a resolution to place a 2.22 mill levy on the November ballot.

If passed, the levy would generate over $2 million a year. Homeowners would pay about $77 annually for every $100,000 in property value. The department wouldn’t begin receiving funds until mid-2026.

Police Chief Valorie Delmont said the department has already done everything possible to reduce costs—cutting staff from 43 to 34 officers, slashing overtime, eliminating subscription-based programs, and holding off on new vehicle purchases.

“We’ve been doing more with less,” Delmont said. “Thirty-four officers is very, very difficult to run a patrol schedule and a detective division.”

In a letter sent to trustees ahead of the vote, Delmont warned, “There are no further cuts that I can make that will save enough money to continue to run the Police Department and Communications Center in a safe and effective way.”

Trustees echoed the urgency. Bruce Shepas said the township has made difficult cuts, upsetting both the public and staff, but the department cannot sustain its current pace. “We’ve saved hundreds of thousands of dollars in the police department by making some tough cuts,” Shepas said. “It upset some of the public, but we all have a job to do.”

Trustee Robert Santos expressed strong personal support for the levy. “I’d rather this levy pass and me lose than me win and the levy fail. That’s how important this is to me,” he said.

Santos also encouraged transparency, telling residents, “Take a look at [our budget]... we’re just three trustees—we’re human. Maybe you’ll see something we don’t.”

He noted that while the township’s general budget may list $23 million, the actual usable portion is closer to $18 million. He added that Austintown runs leaner than many smaller communities with larger budgets and said the board is aggressively pursuing outside funding from the state and from dispensary-related tax revenue.

Now that the levy has been approved to go on the ballot, Chief Delmont said the department will begin a campaign to inform and engage the public.

“We’ll be starting a levy campaign—getting the word out, answering questions, and hopefully earning support by November,” she said.

Until then, officials say the department will continue to stretch its limited resources, but warned that without new funding, further cuts and delays in service may be unavoidable.