Following the budget handshake today, Communities United for Police Reform (CPR) released the following statement from spokesperson Ileana Mendez-Peñate (she/her):
“It’s welcome news that the negotiated budget restored funding to some important safety infrastructure and services, such as libraries, arts and culture and affordable housing, and the Council should be commended for this. However, it’s deeply concerning that it seems that the budget will maintain a record-breaking $12B in NYPD spending for FY25 and fail to redirect any of the NYPD’s bloated funds to restore other critical city programs. This budget is letting Mayor Adams defund civilian oversight of police and other areas that are reportedly not being fully funded – while NYPD spending continues to grow unchecked.
“Mayor Adams wants New Yorkers to think that increased policing and NYPD impunity is the only path forward for this city - but he’s wrong. Public safety requires city budgets that prioritize the needs of everyday New Yorkers, protect New Yorkers from police violence and abuse, and ensure that New Yorkers can thrive. Continuing to give the NYPD preferential treatment in the budget emboldens police violence and it’s shameful that no portion of the NYPD’s bloated budget is being reallocated to crucial needs that would better improve our city’s overall health and safety.”
Background:
The mayor’s April executive budget, if left unchanged when the budget is adopted, will bring NYPD agency spending close to a record-breaking $12 billion dollars for FY25, however, the costs of policing in the NYC budget is expected to be even higher, including:
- Significant annual overspending by the NYPD since Eric Adams became mayor. The NYPD overspent their approved budget by close to $800 million in FY23, and is expected to go at least $600 million over budget in FY24.
- Costs of police misconduct settlements, which don’t come out of the NYPD’s agency budget.
NYPD budget areas that should have been cut include:
- NYPD’s DCPI unit - their press and public relations department of 86 staff, which was revealed to have more than doubled in size in the past year.
- Strategic Response Group
- NYPD Mental Health Co-Response teams that are highly ineffective.
- Vacant school safety positions that should have been cut to redirect funds to close gaps in education.
- Mayor Adams' plan for a $225M in the capital budget for a mega-police training facility, which will lead to a rapid expansion of policing and criminalization beyond the NYPD that will be especially dangerous for Black, Latine, and other New Yorkers of color.
The NYPD’s unchecked power and spending are increasing while protections from police violence are being dismantled by the Adams administration:
- Unjustified police stops have skyrocketed under Mayor Adams
- Misconduct complaints have increased by over 50%
- The NYPD is increasingly burying and blocking discipline in police brutality cases
- Officers who killed Kawaski Trawick, Delrawn Small, Allan Feliz, Antonio Williams, Ronald Anthony Smith and others have not been fired
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About Communities United for Police Reform
Communities United for Police Reform (CPR) is an unprecedented campaign to end discriminatory policing practices in New York, and to build a lasting movement that promotes public safety and reduces reliance on policing. CPR runs coalitions of over 200 local, statewide and national organizations, bringing together a movement of community members, lawyers, researchers and activists to work for change. The partners in this campaign come from all 5 boroughs, from all walks of life and represent many of those most unfairly targeted by the NYPD.