SAPOA

The San Antonio City Council approved a new contract for San Antonio Police officers Thursday in a 8-3 vote, immediately putting the new contract into effect.

Council members’ approval is all that’s needed to implement the contract, which would last through September 2026. It includes changes to officer discipline procedures and would raise officer pay by nearly 16%.

San Antonio Police officers have approved a new union contract that would make it harder for fired cops to get their jobs back, but would also raise officers’ pay by nearly 16% over four years.

As the contract is one step closer to being ratified, San Antonio Police Officers Association and Act 4 SA are weighing in on the changes.

After 30 sit-downs, the contract negotiations between the City of San Antonio and the union representing San Antonio Police officers are approaching the one-year mark.

The City of San Antonio and San Antonio Police Officer’s Association (SAPOA) met Tuesday for the 28th time since their first sit-down on February 12. The two sides say they’ve made progress toward hammering out a new contract, but details on discipline, pay, and other issues remain.

Blue Santa provides Christmas gifts for families in need. Organizers say there are more children on Blue Santa’s list this year due to hardships from the pandemic.

EDITOR’S NOTE - A previous story incorrectly listed the union’s pay proposal at 14 percent. It is 12 percent. The error has been corrected in the text below.

The most contentious item in this year’s city election came down to the wire on Saturday night as the controversial Proposition B was defeated by a little more than two percentage points.

Proposition B is not the only aspect of the negotiations between the city and police union that made for a nasty, public battle.

And it appears possible that, depending on the terms, there could be enough council members willing to vote on such a deal ahead of the election. That’s when the city council is scheduled to canvas the election results and make them official. The union has expressed doubt that council members would be willing to vote on a deal while the election is happening. AdIt’s true that considering a pre-election police contract would put council members in a tight spot. KSAT contacted each council member’s office to ask about their willingness to vote on a contract before voters make their decision on Proposition B.

The debate over whether to repeal San Antonio police officers’ collective bargaining power is already in full swing, but what would the passage of Proposition B on May 1 actually do?

SAN ANTONIO – EDITOR’S NOTE: In the video for this story, Deputy City Manager Maria Villagomez is incorrectly titled Assistant City Manager. “That is the area that we are the furthest apart,” said Deputy City Manager Maria Villagomez, who is the city’s lead negotiator. However, if non-sworn city employees get raises larger than 4% during the final, the union wants its members to get them, too. It also wants the city to match any raises above 12% that the fire union gets in its next contract. The union wants that to go down to 2% increases.

SAPOA President Danny Diaz accused Fix SAPD — the organization that spearheaded the movement behind Prop B — of lying to the voters about the true intentions of the proposal. “These organizations work on a wealth of issues from fixing police contracts to supporting candidates for some of them, district attorney reform, mobilizing black voters, aiding refugee and immigrant families. But Diaz said the repeal amounts to defunding by taking away their seat at the bargaining table. Diaz also invited Alonzio Hardin, the president of the San Antonio Black Police Officers Coalition, to speak. AdREAD MORE: Protections for police officers accused of misconduct in San Antonio

SAN ANTONIO – As the City of San Antonio and the San Antonio Police Officers Association began negotiations on a new union contract Friday, it’s already clear that much of the talks will revolve around officer discipline. “We want the final discipline to be assessed by the chief or the city manager,” Villagomez said Friday after the first meeting concluded. It’s not clear yet what the union will seek out of negotiations, though final proposals are expected by the third meeting. It took more than two years before both sides ratified the last contract. Any agreement reached at the bargaining table would have to be approved by the San Antonio City Council and the SAPOA membership before it’s a done deal.

The May killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police sparked international protests, including weeks of demonstrations in San Antonio. Just yelling, yelling in their faces,” said Fix SAPD Deputy Director Ananda Tomas, who added that it was far from an isolated incident. It impacts us in a great way when we have a bully that just will not let San Antonio be, will not let San Antonio speak.”Ad“(SAPOA is) a club. Back SA Blue social media accounts have used pictures of Fix SAPD petitioners in many of their posts. Martin said any repeal measures pushed by Fix SAPD would only apply to SAPD, and not to other first responders in San Antonio.

SAN ANTONIO – Members of group whose say their goal is to hold bad San Antonio police officers accountable want to refute what they say are “false claims” about them. The San Antonio Coalition for Police Accountability says it plans to call out the San Antonio Police Officers Association at a press event set for Saturday. Fix SAPD is currently campaigning to gather enough signatures from citizens to revoke two laws that they say weaken officer accountability. And I personally know these people that are all from San Antonio,” Salas said. Salas said SAPOA has falsely claimed Fix SAPD was being funded by dark money, and that their petitioners were threatening people.

The chief has been vocal in his opposition to the current union contract and how it cuts into his ability to discipline officers. The current contract expires after September but could be temporarily extended if a new agreement isn’t reached by then. Chief McManus said late last year that the current contract and state laws “protect bad officers” in an interview with KSAT. When asked about Monday’s joint press conference, City Manager Erik Walsh said the following a statement:“The key message from the press conference is that both SAPOA and the City of San Antonio are looking to improve the working relationship for the benefit of the community. Police accountability and transparency remains the top priority for the City in both the Collective Bargaining Agreement and upcoming Texas Legislative Session.

SAN ANTONIO – Editor’s note: This story is part of a series reporting on the latest Bexar Facts poll. Leadership from local law enforcement agencies saw a slight dip in their approval ratings but remained largely popular, according to the latest Bexar Facts-KSAT-San Antonio Report. Voters generally approve of San Antonio Police Chief William McManus, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, and the San Antonio Police Officers Association. The Bexar Facts-KSAT-San Antonio report poll found that of those people surveyed in September, 61% believe local police are fair and impartial when enforcing the law. (KSAT)Of the people surveyed in September, 56% said local police officers have good relationships with communities of color in San Antonio.

The special found that between 2010 and 2019, two-thirds of SAPD officers who were fired ended up getting their jobs back. Allowing bad police officers to still wear that badge and still wear that uniform is actually a disservice to good police officers, Martin said. Its actually sad because a lot of these issues we can resolve at the negotiating table, said Mike Helle, president of the San Antonio Police Officers Association. She said she feels the only SAPD officers who would quit are the ones with bad intentions. The petitions will have to have tens of thousands of signatures, and only then will the possible repeals be put before San Antonio voters in the May 2021 election.

Like other major cities, San Antonio is locked in to a collective bargaining agreement with the local police union, the San Antonio Police Officers Association. AdFor example, in San Antonio, officers accused of misconduct are allowed a 48-hour notice before any interview takes place. San Antonio Police Chief William McManus also sees problems with the collective bargaining agreement and a few state laws that are in place. While all city council members agree that things need to change when the city negotiates the next collective bargaining agreement in 2021, some have different views on how the issue should be approached. The collective bargaining agreement does not distinguish among types of errors – failing to file paperwork or excessive use of force.

SAN ANTONIO Detective Mike Helle, the longtime president of the San Antonio Police Officers Association, confirmed to KSAT Thursday that he will step down at the end of his current term. Helle told KSAT by phone Thursday that he will step down when his current term ends next February and he will also retire from the San Antonio Police Department with the rank of detective. In San Antonio, police officers who were fired ultimately were granted reinstatement in 67.5% of cases in the last decade, according to data obtained by KSAT under public information law. Helle was first elected president in 2008 and is the first president in the associations history to be elected then re-elected five times. A request for comment from the San Antonino Police Department and Mayor Ron Nirenberg was not immediately returned.