Parma is heading back to the ballot box with a familiar ask, moving to renew a two-mill police safety levy that city leaders say helps keep officers on the streets and aging cruisers and technology out of the scrap heap. Officials are pitching it as a straight renewal, not a new tax, and point to recent fleet and tech upgrades as examples of what this particular pot of money pays for.
City Council has adopted Resolution No. 68-26 to submit a 2.00-mill renewal to voters on Nov. 3, 2026, and declared the measure an emergency so the city can hit state certification deadlines. The resolution states that the levy would run for five years, be placed on the 2027 tax list with collections beginning in 2028, and directs the clerk to certify the issue to the Board of Elections by Aug. 5, 2026, according to the City of Parma resolution. Council language says the levy is intended to “provide and maintain motor vehicles, communications, and other equipment used directly in the operation of the police department” and to pay officers’ salaries.
What the levy would pay for
The city says levy dollars cover salaries, cruisers, mobile data terminals, and recording systems such as in-car video and body-worn cameras. As reported by Cleveland.com, Parma’s safety director said the two-mill levy has generated roughly $2.77 million a year over the last five years and was first approved by voters in 2007.
The numbers behind the ask
The Parma Police Department reported 113 sworn officers at the end of 2024, according to the department’s 2024 annual report. Chief Kevin Riley told Cleveland.com that levy revenue represents about 14% of the police budget and called the renewal “critical to police functions.” In other words, City Hall is not treating this like spare change.
Why the city is racing the clock
Council labeled the measure an emergency so Parma can meet the state’s timeline for putting issues on the November ballot and avoid a funding gap, according to the resolution. The paperwork currently leaves the levy’s estimated cost per $100,000 of property value blank until the county fiscal officer certifies the city’s taxable value. Officials say that certification step will lock in the final cost numbers before ballots are printed…