Guest: Dr. Flojuane Cofer - Epidemiologist, Public Health Advocate and Chair of Measure U Committee in Sacramento
As calls to Defund the Police and invest more heavily in vital city services gets louder, the battleground is shifting from the streets into City Hall where many municipalities are attempting to pass budgets in an environment deeply skeptical of maintaining current priorities. Like many other cities Sacramento has a budget that is heavily skewed toward Public Safety. Unlike other cities Sacramento voters just passed a referendum called Measure U, which raised a permanent tax which politicians promised to put towards vital investments in economic development, underserved communities and mental health resources among other languishing priorities. However that is not how it has turned out and we invited the chairwoman of the citizen committee meant to recommend spending priorities, Dr. Flojuane Cofer to discuss what is happening and how this battle relates to the demand for cities to reconfigure how they spend taxpayer money to community members demanding change.
