Houston – A lot of time, the general public doesn’t get a chance to dig into what’s going on with our city leaders and the allocation of tax dollars.
Each Tuesday on KPRC 2+, we talk about your tax dollars and how politicians want to spend it in a segment called “Pop-Off Politics.”
Pop-Off is an ode to The City Of Houston, where residents get to sound off about things that concern them. Here is where KPRC 2 Investigates comes in-- we dig into the city agendas and tell the public what to watch out for that week.
This week, we are examining the Houston Police Department’s requests.
First up, new tasers. HPD wants the city council to approve $4.5 million, with a max contract of $12.6 million for the Tasers. The contract is with AXON Enterprises and Tasers are commonly referred to as conductive energy devices.
The contract council is considering runs through December 2027, with options to continue the contract until December 2030.
The Tasers are a tool for law enforcement to use non-lethal force while making arrests. These are really to help those patrols on the streets making daily calls. HPD told KPRC 2 Investigates their tasers are outdated and many need to be replaced.
The other thing HPD is asking the council to approve is money for a new record-keeping system. The current system is roughly a decade old.
We live in a data environment now, and everything is tracked. HPD says a new system from Versaterm Public Safety would allow officials to keep better records. The total cost is $4,031,000.
While talking with HPD representatives, this new system will help streamline and track all the offense reports. Plus, it’s directly linked with the National Incident-Based Reporting System, more commonly known as NIBRS.
After city council met on Wednesday, council pulled the vote on the records management system and the item was not considered.