Mayor of New York City Bill de Blasio
Bill de BlasioMore than 15 New York correctional officers will be disciplined after the death of a trans inmate on Riker’s Island Hundreds attend the ‘Occupy City Hall’ protest in New York to advocate for police department budget cuts Sometimes it makes sense common overcomes a demand for freedoms MORE (D) is proposing a $ 1 billion cut to the New York Police Department’s annual budget as calls across the country grow for local governments to siphon off law enforcement funds and spend it on other social services.
De Blasio said at a press conference Monday that his office submitted a budget to City Hall over the weekend that it “would save $ 1 billion” for New York police.
He said the funds will go to programs that affect youth and “communities in a way that helps address many of the underlying problems that we know are the cause of so many problems in our society.”
“I am excited to say that we have a plan that can achieve real reform, that can achieve real redistribution and, at the same time, ensure that we keep our city safe, and we make sure that our officers are patrolling where we need them. Around this city, “de Blasio added.
Calls to disburse the police and commit government funds to other social services have gained momentum in the weeks after George Floyd’s death on May 25 at the hands of the Minneapolis police. Mayors in San Francisco and Los Angeles have pledged to cut police budgets, while city councils in places like Washington, DC have approved a series of reform measures to improve oversight of law enforcement.
In early June, de Blasio pledged to cut funds for the police and invest the money in youth and social services. He didn’t promise a specific figure until this weekend.
Activists, City Council members, and former De Blasio employees had been asking the mayor to cut the New York police budget by $ 1 billion. The department has an annual budget of approximately $ 6 billion.
De Blasio announced the cuts as protesters calling for police dismantling continue to sit outside City Hall, according to ABC News. The mayor said his office’s proposal included $ 500 million for youth centers and developments of the New York City Housing Authority.
The money will be transferred from the capital budget of the police department, De Blasio said, adding that “the capital part is separated from the billion.”
De Blasio’s proposal also calls for transferring school security officers, who wear police uniforms, to the Department of Education and canceling a July class of approximately 1,100 new recruits, Politico said.
Remember, we are talking between the Executive Budget in April and this budget now, billions of dollars in cuts across all of our agencies, “de Blasio said, adding that his office is still in negotiations with City Hall. He did not say if any department was receiving as many funding cuts as the police.
The new budget, which is supposed to total around $ 87 billion, expires on Wednesday. The coronavirus pandemic, which hit the city especially in April and May, has cost the city more than $ 7 billion, according to Politico.
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