Each Friday, Eye on the Statehouse will announce its “Porker of the Week.” It’s our way of calling attention to a particularly big or wasteful spender.

This week’s “Porker” is the Cincinnati police department for believing that money grows on trees.

In a recent Cincinnati Enquirer article, the police department bragged about its newest purchase: a 23-foot Sea Ark boat. In the next year, the department hopes to purchase gear for the new boat, including uniforms and life vests. The vessel will primarily be used to find drunken boaters on the Ohio River.

This leads us to multiple questions, such as the necessity of such a project: The river is primarily located in Kentucky state lines and is already patrolled by 4 other agencies!

Also, how is such a project being financed? Sgt. Bill Halusek of the Cincinnati police department told the Enquirer “…it’s not costing us anything.”

That’s not exactly the case.

The boat is actually being financed with a $141,000 Homeland Security grant. The police department has also applied for an annually-renewable $35,000 Ohio Department of Natural Resources grant. That’s a whole lot of our hard-earned cash going to law enforcement for a brand new toy.

What the Cincinnati police department and government agencies need to recognize is that their spending doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Anytime they receive something for “nothing” someone has, either voluntarily or involuntarily, provided the necessary financing.

In the case of Cincinnati’s new boat, taxpayers will be footing the bill.

Share This