City of Houston passed $5.1 Billion FY2021 budget without defunding police department.

The mayor of Houston, Sylvester Turner, and the city councilors deliberated in their Wednesday 10th, 2020 session on the FY2021 budget for more than six hours.
The amendments from the councilors were debated, particularly those from council lady Dr. Plummer who presented her documented change proposals on improving policing, during this period of protests against police departments and their members nationally motivated by the recent killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis Minnesota by police.
Councilman Knox, a former police officer who lost his son Jason Knox in a police helicopter crash, countered some of the proposals from Plummer, saying they were going contrary to the city council charter and undermining the functions and authority of department leadership. The mayor agreed that certain programs like reentry and my brother's keepers could be improved upon and other community services to improve on policing"I want to thank each city council member for the work they put in and for unanimously passing the budget. It is a balanced budget that meets the needs of Houston residents," said Mayor Turner. "We are funding parks, trash collection, libraries, and upgrades to our drainage and streets. This budget provides the basic services our residents expect and deserve."g proposed were acceptable but should be sent to the committees involved so that they are studied properly and the people given the opportunity to contribute ideas to make them work.
The city council passed the $5.1 billion, the fiscal year 2021 budget unanimously. Mayor Sylvester Turner had these words to say, "I want to thank each city council member for the work they put in and for unanimously passing the budget. It is a balanced budget that meets the needs of Houston residents," said Mayor Turner. "We are funding parks, trash collection, libraries, and upgrades to our drainage and streets. This budget provides the basic services our residents expect and deserve."
This year, the City of Houston faced a $169 million budget crisis - the worst in recent history - exacerbated by the decline in sales tax revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Through belt-tightening and by tapping into the $404 million in CARES Act funding, Mayor Turner and the City Council managed to pass a fiscally responsible budget that balances revenue and spending without furloughing city employees.
The approved FY 2021 $5.1 billion budget provides:
Funding for five police cadet classes
Funding for four fire department cadet classes
Restores the City's fund balance to over eight percent
The ability of the City to move forward on its top priorities.
The deliberations took place in city hall chambers while protesters outside gave speeches on why the budget vote should be stopped and the city to defund the police department.
Dr. Akwo Thompson Ntuba