WHEREAS, All the non-administrative police and fire personnel at Pittsfield Township’s Department of Public Safety provide an essential service to our residents, strive to improve the quality of life in our community and create public safety as part of their duty and ongoing mission to protect and serve all citizens who reside, work, visit, and recreate in Pittsfield Township; and

WHEREAS, The COVID-19 pandemic has created a public health crisis, including numerous hardships and illnesses for many in our community and requires our public safety first responders to continue protecting and providing services to our community under hazardous conditions, with the constant danger of exposure and contracting the potentially life-threatening Coronavirus while performing their essential public safety duties; and

WHEREAS, Since March 15, 2020, when we first began to deal with the pandemic, both our administrative and leadership team have taken many steps and implemented multiple initiatives to provide protections for vulnerable community members, including adoption of Resolution #20-16 to assist local, small businesses and Resolution #20-17 to enhance access to affordable housing, and Resolution #20-19 to allow all residents to defer utility payments; and

WHEREAS, The Board of Trustees wish to recognize and hereby proclaim our deepest gratitude for the dangers faced by our public safety first responders and for the many sacrifices that they and their families have and continue to make protecting and serving our community during the pandemic; and

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, That the Pittsfield Charter Township Board of Trustees hereby allocates two hundred fifty (250) hours of hazard compensation to every non-administrative police and fire personnel in the Department of Public Safety, with the 250 hours of hazard compensation placed in the employee's discretionary time-off bank with its specific use to be outlined in a subsequent Letter of Understanding between the respective collective bargaining unit (POAM/POLC/IAFF) and Pittsfield Charter Township with the knowledge that the hours will not be compensated monetarily.