KC Chamber of Commerce opposes Missouri amendment requiring more KCPD funding

The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce has taken a public position opposing an amendment to the Missouri Constitution that would require Kansas City to increase how much it spends on the police department.

The measure, known as Amendment 4, will will appear on the Nov. 8 ballot statewide.

If approved, it would require Kansas City to spend 25% of its general revenue on law enforcement, an amount well above the previous state requirement of at least 20%.

In a written statement Wednesday, the Chamber said the measure would mandate that the city spend no less than one-fourth of its general revenues to fund the police department.

The constitutional amendment, “creates a dangerous exception to the Missouri constitution, which prohibits an increase in the level of any activity or service mandated by the general assembly or a state agency of other Missouri political subdivisions, unless the state pays for any increased costs.”

The Chamber said it is their position that local budget decisions should be decided by local elected officials and not the Missouri General Assembly in a statewide election.

If approved, the amendment could lead to other constitutional amendments that would impose unfunded mandates on local governments, the Chamber said.

State control of Kansas City police

Mayor Quinton Lucas, a member of the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners, posted a message on Twitter Wednesday commending the Chamber for opposing the measure.

“Kansas City area businesses agree that Missouri Amendment 4 is anti-democratic, making local decisions at a state level, and threatening ultimately to increase our taxes statewide, Lucas wrote. “I thank the @kcchamber for encouraging all Missourians to Vote No on 4.”

Lucas and other city leaders have said spending more on the police force would hinder appropriate funding for other city services.

Kansas City is one of the only major U.S. cities whose police departments are under state control. The police department is overseen by a board of five commissioners, four who are appointed by the governor. Lucas, as mayor, is the board’s fifth member.

The city allocates millions to fund the police department but has no say in how that money is spent.

Gwen Grant, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City, also applauded the Chamber’s effort to urge Missouri voters to reject the constitutional amendment.

“The Chamber’s statement in opposition to Amendment 4 is on point,” Grant said in a statement to The Star. “Like the Chamber, all Kansas Citians and all municipalities in the state should be opposed to this egregious effort to exert more control over how we spend our tax dollars.”

Missouri lawmakers sought statewide vote

The constitutional amendment is the result of a law passed earlier this year that would require a statewide election to raise the KCPD funding allocation.

The measure, sponsored by Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, a Parkville Republican, was in response to a previous effort by the Kansas City Council majority to shift some police spending to crime prevention programs.

Other Republican lawmakers said the legislation was designed to stop Kansas City officials from “defunding” its police force.

In that effort led by Lucas, the City Council voted to reallocate $42 million of KCPD’s budget to fund crime-fighting initiatives. The police department would then be required to negotiate with the city manager on how those funds would be spent.

The police board sued and prevailed when a Jackson County judge ruled that the Council had interfered with the board’s “exclusive management and control” of the police department.

After the Luetkemeyer bill was signed into law, Lucas filed a lawsuit against the state of Missouri, asking the courts to stop the enforcement of the new law.

Lucas said that the law violates a provision of the Missouri Constitution that restricts the lawmakers from approving unfunded mandates to local governments.

If implemented, the law would force Kansas City to cut spending from other government services such as the fire department, road improvements and parks, Lucas said in his lawsuit.

The City Council earlier this year approved an annual operating budget that included $269 million for police spending.

The Kansas City Star’s Kacen Bayless contributed to this report.