As Crime Rates Still Sky High – Mayor Adams Cuts NYPD Overtime
To address the city’s migrant crisis, Mayor Eric Adams is planning to reduce overtime pay for NYPD officers, even as the police continue their efforts to control crime rates that remain higher than pre-pandemic levels.
Jacques Jiha, the mayor’s budget director, has instructed the city’s four uniformed agencies, which include the police, fire department, sanitation department, and corrections department, to develop strategies to reduce their overtime costs.
In a memo sent to city agencies on Saturday, Jiha stated, “The mayor will issue a directive to implement an overtime reduction initiative for our city’s four uniformed agencies (NYPD, FDNY, DOC/DSNY). These agencies must submit a plan to reduce year-to-year OT spending.”
The memo further mandates that the uniformed agencies provide monthly reports to City Hall to monitor their progress in reducing overtime expenditures.
This directive comes at a time when Mayor Adams has expressed concerns that the recent influx of tens of thousands of asylum seekers into New York City could have devastating financial consequences for the city. He has estimated that the migrant influx may cost the city $12 billion over the next three years, prompting the need for immediate agency budget cuts of 5%, with the possibility of a total 15% reduction by spring. Jiha, however, noted that the more severe reduction would still only cover two-thirds of the projected asylum-related costs.
Patrick Hendry, the leader of the city’s largest police union, the Police Benevolent Association, criticized the idea of cutting overtime costs for police officers. He pointed out that significantly reducing overtime would be challenging for the NYPD, given the existing staffing shortage. The department is still short of thousands of officers, and they are struggling to bring crime levels back to where they were before 2020 due to the inadequate personnel.
Hendry emphasized that if City Hall wishes to save money without compromising public safety, it should invest in retaining experienced police officers.
A political strategist also commented that Mayor Adams, who plans to seek re-election in 2025, is taking a substantial risk by making changes to NYPD personnel levels.
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