Joe Guillen

Detroit Free Press

The Detroit City Council today unanimously approved an annual budget that prioritizes public safety while using a conservative spending philosophy that could end state oversight of city finances by early next year.

Detroit Chief Financial Officer John Hill said the council did not make major changes to the $1.07-billion general fund budget Mayor Mike Duggan presented on Feb. 23.

The spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1 is expected to result in 300 more police officers on the street, including more than 170 already in the police academy as of last month.

The budget also sets aside a $50-million fund for future pension payments that begin in 2024..

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The budget now goes back to Duggan for his signature, then to the state’s Detroit Financial Review Commission, the post-bankruptcy oversight panel that must approve city budgets. The commission is expected to take up the city’s budget at its April 17 meeting.

Hill said the Detroit’s commitment to saving money for future pension payments will help the city get out from under state oversight.

“I think it’s a major step,” Hill said today after the council vote. “I don’t know how many other cities or jurisdictions are doing this kind of planning — setting money aside — to deal with issues out in 2024.”

If approved, the 2017-18 budget would be the city’s fourth straight balanced budget.