Canfield City Council at its meeting voted to establish a separate fund for a federal OBI task force grant, amend the city's annual appropriation ordinance and approve a transfer to the city's unclaimed monies fund.

Finance Director Missus Clayton told the council the city was awarded the OBI task force grant for fiscal year 2026 and that, as a federal grant passed through the Ohio Traffic Safety Office, it must be budgeted in a separate fund. "This is our fifteenth year doing this," Clayton said. She also said the grant year runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 and that a budget adjustment on the agenda will let staff start spending the grant funds "as of today."

The council moved to dispense with the charter requirement for two readings and authorized the ordinances on first reading. Council then approved an ordinance amending the annual appropriations (referred to in the meeting as ordinance 20 25 dash 28), authorized creation of the OBI grant fund and passed an ordinance providing transfers to the unclaimed monies fund so the clerk can issue checks if owners come forward. The motion to create the OBI fund and the related budget adjustment appeared on the agenda to allow the city to accept and expend the federal grant.

Missus Clayton said she would post the audit report released this week by the Ohio State Auditor on the city website and that the city will create the separate fund for the OBI grant because federal rules require that a federal grant be kept in its own fund. Lieutenant Weaver was referenced as the contact for the grant plan and anticipated local activity tied to the OBI funding.

Council took the required procedural votes to waive full reading of ordinances under Section 4.05 of the Charter of the City of Canfield and to read titles only before adoption. There was no extended debate recorded on the measures; council members answered affirmatively during roll call for each measure and the chair declared passage.

The ordinances take effect according to the timelines stated in the measures and the finance director noted staff would move funds into the new OBI account and begin using grant funds for eligible OBI activities pending grant-plan steps by police staff.

Votes at a glance
- Ordinance (amending annual appropriation; "20 25 dash 28" as read in the meeting): Motion to dispense with two readings and adopt on first reading — approved (recorded by roll call as affirmative).
- Ordinance (creation of separate fund for OBI task force grant and related budget adjustment): Motion to dispense with two readings and adopt on first reading — approved (recorded by roll call as affirmative).
- Ordinance (transfer to unclaimed monies fund): Motion to approve transfer — approved (recorded by roll call as affirmative).

The transcript records unanimous affirmative responses on roll call for the recorded measures; individual vote tallies were not listed in full in the meeting transcript excerpt.