Texas officials on Tuesday introduced legislation to disincentive police.
Head of State Greg Abbott, lt. Gover Dan Dan and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen announced the proposal along with other local officials at the Bob Bolen Safety Complex in Ft. Value.
“When crime comes up, the last thing we need to do is defuse the police,” the Republican governor said. The governor added that every city in the state that defends police departments will have property tax rates frozen at their current level, according to Fox 26 Houston.
Cities that vote to defend police would not be able to increase property taxes under the legislation.
AUSTIN CITY Council votes to cut $ 150 million from police party
“Cities that put residents at risk by reducing law enforcement would then not be able to turn around and get back and get more real estate for dollars,” Abbott said.
Abbott said such cities ‘were more focused on political agendas than public security.’ L
Last week, the city of Austin announced that it would be the last city to separate funding from its police department. The city council unanimously voted in favor of a proposal to cut the police budget by $ 150 million, about 34 percent of the current total, and to invest in other resources.
Of that $ 150 million, $ 21 million would be invested in medical services, shelters for domestic violence and homelessness programs.
A VIEW OF CITIES VIEWS POLICE BUDGET CUTS AMID CRIME SURGES
About another $ 80 million will go into a “Decouple Fund” that many civil services, such as forensic science and victim services, will transfer outside the police department.
The rest of the money, about $ 49 million, will go into a ‘Reimagine Safety Fund’, the purpose of which is to ‘donate dollars from the fund to alternative forms of public safety and community support, over the course of the year’s reimagining process. ‘
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Austin advocated for “culture cancellation” in its decision to defuse law enforcement.
“The unjust attack by the Austin mayor and city council on the budget of their police department is nothing more than a political horsemeat driven by the pressure of ‘cancel culture,'” Paxton said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the goals of this ‘cancellation’ are the brave men and women who put themselves on the line without life to keep our families safe.”
The city struggles to control crime, violence and homelessness, and the mayor and council ignore the safety of the capital, the people who live there and the guests who visit, Paxton said.
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Activists who have applied to be received by the police were also not happy with the final agreement. Communities of Color United, an Austin activist group, demanded a $ 50 million investment, amounting to $ 220 million. They also said that a majority of the funds is an accounting shift that the police could still access in the near future.
Fox Business’ Paul Best contributed to this report.