SBCC will vote on water rate hike, gun safety resolution
The South Bend Common Council will tackle two big issues during Monday night’s meeting.
The first is regarding the city’s aging infrastructure.
South Bend is looking to upgrade or replace equipment that is affecting the city’s water system. The council is proposing a water rate increase.
The discussion started nearly 6 months ago. It’s been nearly 10 years since rates have increased, so it could be a major hike.
On March 13th, the council proposed small increases over a longer period of time. The city is proposing two 22% increases over 6 years instead of the original plan, which was a 43% increase over a five-year period.
$88 million total is needed for the upgrades. The current proposal will only bring in $22 million.
The other issue is a gun safety resolution.
Community members in South Bend, especially in the city’s Near Northwest Community, have had enough of the violence.
They’re calling on state and federal leaders for stricter regulations.
They want lawmakers to keep guns out of the hands of violent criminals, domestic abusers and severely mentally ill individuals. The resolution demands officials to pass gun laws to include universal background checks and tighten up laws that already exist.
The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence says 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men in the United States have experienced some form of physical violence.
The council will meet tonight at 7 P.M.
To view the entire South Bend Gun Violence Prevention Resolution, click here: http://www.resolveforgunsense.org/assets/South_Bend_GVP_Temp._2017_copy.pdf