I am running for re-election to Cincinnati City Council because our City deserves continued support. I ran in 2021 so young black women, just like me, saw themselves on council. That goal reigns true.

During my first weeks in office, I identified $100,000 in unallocated funds within the budget. One of the first pieces of legislation I sponsored directed these funds towards the engagement for the renewal of the Green Cincinnati Plan. The funds specifically came from the city’s deal with Dynegy to provide a discount for ratepayers to use green energy sources, which also rebates funds back to the city. We will continue to receive the rebate for the next four years, and I have also ensured that those funds will go to the Green Cincinnati Fund and the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, which will provide small dollar grants for local green initiatives. In addition, I championed the inclusion of $4 million dollars for Green Cincinnati Initiatives in the FY23-24 General Fund Budget. With these funds, the City is pursuing several of its climate action goals. In particular, the funds have been used to study and prepare our city grid for vehicle electrification with a focus on equitable access across the neighborhoods. We chaired the Green Cincinnati Steering Committee. As a result of my work, I have been recognized by the Ohio Environmental Council as a Climate Policy Champion.

We declared gun violence a public health crisis, and my office led the charge on working with the administration to build a public health framework for Cincinnati’s approach to gun violence. I also co-sponsored two major new initiatives with the Mayor and other council members that require that guns be locked up when there is a child in the house and make it possible for the City’s prosecutors to charge people in possession of guns when they have domestic violence charges on their record.

We lead on creating the City’s first ever leveraged support process, ensuring that the City is funding nonprofits in an innovative, effective way and removes the opportunity for bias and favoritism. We sponsored the first ever City Council Code of Conduct. We updated the City’s non-discrimination code to include protections for people making sexual and reproductive healthcare decisions.We collaborated on and updated Human Services priorities, Including 20% of HS funding to youth gun violence prevention, 25% to comprehensive workforce development, 35-33% to the Impact Award in housing stabilization, 10-18% to housing for high risk populations.

All of these things, and more, make me incredibly proud of my tenure thus far, and I am excited by the opportunity to keep the work going.

Let’s continue to work – together,
Meeka