Preemption of Local Police Budgets

LSSC-IssueSpecific-PoliceThumb.png

This is one in a series of LSSC toolkits aimed at providing a one-stop-shop for all of the messaging, media, legal, and research resources associated with individual issue areas that are commonly preempted. See them all here.

This document was last updated in April 2022.

Messaging 101

  • Local control over local budgets is essential – it ensures that local elected officials can respond to the unique needs and concerns of their communities and enact measures that protect the health, safety, and well-being of their constituents.    

  • But recently, we’ve seen a number of state legislatures attempt to take control of local budget decisions and processes – particularly as it relates to local control of police budgets.

    • This sets a dangerous precedent, and it ignores the differing needs of every community. Investments in policing, education, housing, and mental health services all impact public safety and well-being. The level of investments varies community by community – and that’s one of the reasons local budget control matters.

    • Most of these bills include some form of punishment (such as financial penalties) for localities and officials who try to assert local oversight of local spending for local services.

  • As our nation continues to examine the systems of inequity that have allowed racism and white supremacy to flourish, it’s important to understand that police budget preemption is not a coincidence: it’s reflective of efforts to use preemption as a tool to take political power and local control away from BIPOC communities, immigrants, women, and workers in low- wage industries.

    • Our criminal justice system disproportionately harms – and over-polices – Black and Brown communities. The inequities embedded in our justice system can have lasting consequences for individuals, families, and communities.

    • Efforts to preempt local police budgeting inhibits the ability of local elected officials to devise solutions that best meet the needs of their constituents; instead protecting an existing system that causes disproportionate harm.

    • American Friends Service Committee has shared several examples of how community-centric investments succeed:

      • Mothers Against Senseless Killings (MASK) is made up of moms in Chicago who have dedicated themselves to transforming a troubled block into a community without police. By investing in community gatherings and building relationships with people and families, there’s been a reduction in violence.

      • Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets (CAHOOTS) is a Eugene, OR-based mental health crisis intervention team. Formed in 1989, they now handle 20 percent of emergency calls in the region, responding to crises such as overdoses and suicide interventions.

    • This state takeover of local government budgeting and other functions - such as administration of local elections, public health rules and land uses - is part of an ongoing effort to erode the power and independence of localities and deny the policy choices of racially diverse, metropolitan centers.

Media Examples

Legal Resources

Research Resources

Adam Polaski