Cities are slashing their police department budgets — not because of the movement to defund law enforcement over police violence but rather because the coronavirus is forcing spending cuts.
Maryland recently reduced its state police department budget by 2%. New York City in June canceled the New York Police Department’s class of more than 1,100 new recruits in part because of the drastic decline in city revenue. Seattle last week made almost $3 million in cuts from the Seattle Police Department, which would reduce its force by up to 100 officers.
Furthermore, almost half of the 258 police chiefs and sheriffs surveyed by the Police Executive Research Forum, a police association, said in July they were experiencing or expected to see budget cuts in the upcoming fiscal year in the 5%-10% range.
Every state now faces a budget shortfall due to the pandemic, with estimates that revenue shortages could total more than $200 billion through this fiscal year. As a result, states are considering cuts to basic services, including education, healthcare, and public safety.
Economic activity in every state fell sharply in the first few months of the year, and state and local governments have lost 1.5 million jobs since the coronavirus pandemic began.
The concept of defunding the police has been thrust into the national conversation by activists aligned with Black Lives Matter in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis. Black Lives Matter D.C., for example, has called for defunding the Metropolitan Police Department and dedicating the resources to social programs.
Yet different people mean different things by the phrase. Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza told NBC’s Meet the Press in June that her organization uses the term to mean a reallocation of police funds to other priorities rather than abolishing police departments.
Democrats and Republicans in Congress have failed to reach an agreement for aid to states and cities that would fund police departments and other services.
Democrats have proposed nearly $1 trillion in additional aid to state and local governments to help make up for the reduced revenue and increased spending. Republicans, on the other hand, have proposed $105 billion for education funding for state and local governments and nothing further.
Democrats, unions, and others warn that the cuts to police funding could result in longer 911 response times and layoffs of some police officers, first responders, and teachers.
“If in fact [Congress] fail[s] to help fund state and local governments during this pandemic, when you make that 911 call, there won’t be enough people at the other end to respond because of the lack of resources that are here,” said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka during a press call earlier in August. AFL-CIO is the largest federation of unions in the United States.
“It will affect every American out there in every facet of their lives, and it will be [Congress’s] responsibility because they failed to act,” said Trumka.
Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana is one of few GOP members who has called for state and local aid beyond the $105 billion proposed in a recent Senate Republican bill, the HEALS Act. He said on the Senate floor earlier this month that supporting essential public services was just as vital to the public and to the economic recovery as more small business loans and stimulus payments.
“I do not want to see a situation where, for example, cities slash police budgets and force layoffs of those who put their lives on the line to keep us safe,” said Cassidy.
“Mr. President, Congress should not let police officers, firefighters, first responders, teachers, sanitation workers, and others lose their jobs by the millions at a time when our country needs them most,” he said.
