A agreement is apparently close to being finalized in the three-year-old dispute over Louisville Metro Police Department take-home cars. In 2008, then-Mayor Jerry Abramson ordered that officers be charged a monthly fee for the private use of their take-home cruisers, in order to help close a budget shortfall.The Fraternal Order of Police filed suit, claiming that the cars were part of its contract with the city and not subject to fees. Various courts and the state Department of Labor sided with the union.The FOP says on its website that an agreement has been reached with new Mayor Greg Fischer that would return nearly $1 million in fees that were collected. It’s subject to union ratification.Asked about it Friday, Fischer would only say that talks have been ongoing."I’ve been trying to resolve the take home car with the police and we’ve been talking to them over the past several weeks and I hope that we’re getting close to a successful resolution there," he said.The FOP also says the agreement calls for officers to pay a $50 monthly fee if they use their cruisers for off-duty jobs.
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.