CINCINNATI (WXIX) - During his swearing-in ceremony, Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval announced a proposal to increase residents’ income taxes to combat crime and poverty in the city.
In the next 60 days, a proposal to increase taxes on residents’ earnings will be introduced to fund public safety measures and affordability, Mayor Pureval said Tuesday.
Pureval believes the tax plan will play a role in “disrupting poverty, which is the root cause of youth violence.”
“Juvenile gun violence is a crisis. And it must be met with a bold response,” he said at his inauguration.
The mayor, who is entering his second term, did not say how much of an increase residents could see, but he says it could help fund more than just safety efforts.
“New revenue will allow us to fund and further prioritize public safety investments and support our police and fire in a historic way. But it will also empower us to invest in affordable housing, catalyze neighborhoods that have not shared in our growth, and support programs that will help build our minority-owned businesses,” he explained.
Currently, Cincinnatians pay 1.8% in income tax.
Pureval also intends to continue the city’s current public safety initiatives, such as extending a partnership with Ohio State Highway Patrol.
He did not clarify how often these patrols would be out.
“My expectation is it will be an annual commitment and all of the resources available to us from the state will be deployed in the city under the chief’s command,” he told FOX19 NOW.
Other parts of the 2025 public safety plan that will be incorporated in 2026 include:
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Permanently implementing walking patrols in the city
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Building onto the city’s bike patrols
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Investing in technology, like license plate readers and the Cincinnati Police Department’s drone program
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Investing in programs that have “proven to mitigate crime”
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Continuing the curfew for juveniles in certain parts of Over-the-Rhine and downtown
“Twenty-twenty-five was a challenging year, and that is especially true when it comes to public safety,” he said. “As we speak, our community is mourning the loss of an 11-year-old child. Another one of our children lost to senseless gun violence.”
Following the death of QueenEr’Re Reed, who was shot and killed at a park in the West End neighborhood, residents have questioned city leaders’ public safety efforts, especially after they were promised security cameras.
Cincinnati City Council passed a $5.4 million safety plan in September, setting aside $150,000 of that money for installing cameras and lights in the area.
“That $150,000 has been sitting there since September,” declared Council Member Anna Albi.
The hope was that the $5.4 million safety plan would fulfill the promises made when another 11-year-old child, Domonic Davis, was shot and killed in the West End in 2023.
“It is on us as the city, whether that is the mayor, council, or CPD, to deploy the resources or interventions into the community as fast as possible, and I can guarantee that that is CPD’s commitment,” Mayor Pureval remarked.
A commitment in question after Reed was killed and cameras in the area were seemingly still out of sight.
The mayor says CPD does have cameras in the West End, but couldn’t say how many or how many still need to be installed.
“CPD is doing the work to identify those numbers, and as soon as we have them, we will make them available to you,” the mayor said.
Council Member Albi says one of the challenges is getting permission.
“Oftentimes, the locations that would be most effective is on private property, so we need the property owner to give us that permission,” Albi explained. “So, to help speed up the process, I am personally asking people in the community to reach out to me.”
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