Many police reform proposals by lawmakers rely on the threat of a loss of federal funding. When that’s been tried in the past, federal oversight has been slow and some states have determined that the funding cuts are smaller than the cost of complying.
, the Justice Department announced this month it was distributing nearly $400 million to help pay for the hiring of 2,732 officers in 596 law enforcement agencies.The second program proposed as leverage, the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program, distributed nearly $253 million for law enforcement and corrections programs in the last fiscal year. The funding, which is based primarily on crime rates and population, is prized by agencies for its flexibility.
Still, Mahoney said eliminating the funding “would certainly have an impact.” He’s already trying to figure out how to cut between $2.5 million and $5 million because the pandemic has reduced county income. But Andrea Edmiston, director of governmental affairs for the National Association of Police Organizations, called the approach shortsighted. At a time when states and local governments have big budget holes, she said, they’re being asked to take on new training and reporting requirements that will be expensive to implement.
“It’s going to help a reform-minded police chief to build his or her case for these kinds of reforms,” he said.
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