A Jefferson circuit judge has granted a temporary injunction blocking Metro Government from raising the monthly fees paid by police officers and other workers for their take-home cruisers.The injunction was requested by the Fraternal Order of Police, which contends the take-home car program is part of the union's contract with the city and can't be altered without itsconsent.Mayor Jerry Abramson ordered an increase in the take-home fee this month to help offset a projected $20 million budget shortfall.His spokesperson, Chris Poynter, says an appeal will be filed."We think the police take home cars are a privilege, not a right and they are not part of the contract negotiations, so we will appeal immediately," Poynter said Wednesday.The mayor's office wants to raise the monthly take-home car fee from $30 to $100. Officers who use their cars for a second job would have their fee raised from $60 to $160.Officials say the increases would raise about $1.6 million.
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.
