Issues

Police are often the first responders in a variety of situations, including when someone is struggling with a mental health problem. During a Coffee with a Cop Zoom meeting in June, Williamstown Police Chief Kyle Johnson said the department sometimes receives multiple mental health-related calls per week.

How could our town better protect and serve people struggling with mental health problems? According to the Select Board’s memorandum on responding to Racial Concerns, town manager Jason Hoch and Chief Johnson are reviewing records to, “develop a plan to supplement the police with the appropriate level and type of mental health resources.”

As of Tuesday, August 4, 2020, Town Manager Jason Hoch provided an overview of the updated 2021 budget that included additional funding for mental health services in Williamstown. In that overview, Hoch wrote:

60,000 has been added to a new “department” for contract mental health services to provide an opportunity to actively work on alternate approaches and more proactive support for mental health related issues now reaching the town through the Police Department.

The addition of funding for a department for mental health services is a concrete step towards addressing mental health care in Williamstown.

A subgroup of local social workers who are also members of WRJPR is developing recommendations for Town Manager Jason Hoch to consider as local leaders move forward to create a more detailed services plan.

Why? We believe in the power of reimagining what community safety means. We believe that town leaders should collaborate with people who have a variety of backgrounds when they decide how to improve mental health services in Williamstown.

A town’s budget reflects a town’s priorities. In 2019, Williamstown spent $1,081,848.80 on police wages, holiday pay, overtime pay, vehicles, equipment, supplies, training, uniforms, and other expenses.

That amount does not include the estimated $350,000 debt payment on the $5 million bond for the new police station, nor does it include the cost of Police Department employee benefits.

In 2020, the WPD budget increased by $108,530.47.

Why is an ever-increasing WPD budget a problem?

Every taxpayer dollar invested in policing is a dollar that could be spent on accessible housing, mental health care, education, and other budget areas that directly serve the needs of vulnerable residents.

Williamstown has followed a similar trend as towns and cities across the country: we have increased our police budget yearly without seriously considering the moral implications.

In its report on Reimagining Safety & Security in Our Communities, The Center for Popular Democracy explains how these trends disproportionately impact Black and brown low-income communities:

Over the last 30 years, the US has dramatically increased its investment in policing and incarceration, while drastically cutting investments in basic infrastructure and slowing investment in social safety net programs...These investment choices have devastated Black and brown low-income communities who are most affected by both criminalization and systemic social divestment.

As part of its platform, the Movement for Black Lives calls for the “reallocation of federal, state, and local government funds from "policing and incarceration to long-term strategies for education, restorative justice services, and employment programs.”

To learn more about the Williamstown Police Department budget, click on the data analysis tab.