Some members of the Omaha City Council aren't happy with the way the public safety auditor position is set up and on Tuesday they moved to put the brakes on it.

This isn't the first time the council has disagreed with issues concerning the public safety auditor. The council voted against funding the position in 2005.

The mayor allotted $125,000 for the auditor position in his 2009 budget. The city council voted Tuesday to move that into its budget and put the hiring of the auditor on hold for now.

The auditor position has been a political hot potato for years. Some say it's crucial for overseeing the police department while others say the position is not needed.

At the public hearing for the mayor's budget proposal earlier this month more than 100 people showed up and many supported bringing back a public safety auditor.

That support was not echoed by six of the seven council members on Tuesday.

Councilman Jim Vokal says, "The current ordinance, as it describes the position today, the majority of the council does not feel comfortable with."

All council members with the exception of Frank Brown voted to remove the funding until a revised ordinance defining the auditor position can be passed.

"And if that doesn't happen, then not only in 2009 but indefinitely the position will not be staffed," Vokal said.

Frank Brown stood by the mayor's proposal, "because I believe that the mayor had this as an idea of a way to fund the auditor. So to put it in contingency means that the city council can use that for different purposes as long as they have four or five votes," he said.

Brown says Omaha needs an independent auditor to protect officers from false claims and to protect citizens.

He says, "It's a matter of people being heard who wouldn't otherwise be heard and justice being initiated. So, it's an extra set of eyes for the public."

A spokesperson for Mayor Fahey says the mayor is fine with the idea that the council wants to work with the auditor ordinance. He will wait to see what becomes of that.

The next step is to get the revised ordinance in front of the council.