Proposed police budget would give MPD $27M boost

If Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s proposed 2022 budget for the police department is approved by the City Council, the department will receive a 17% increase in funding.

That increase amounts to $27,638,777, and the total proposed 2022 budget for the Minneapolis Police Department is $191,929,690.22.

Addressing staffing levels, an increase in employee costs, disability claims, and workers’ compensation as reasons for the increase in desired funding, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo also spent time talking about the increase in violent crime.

"We are at an inflection point in our city," Arradondo said during the Minneapolis Budget Committee meeting Monday.

Part of the budget presentation included crime statistics from the last few years. Year-to-date – from Jan. 1 through Oct. 11 – homicides are up 114.3% this year compared to 2019. The number of people shot from that same time period is up 137.7% this year as well.

Arradondo said the department is down 131 patrol officers. As he put it, that’s enough people to staff an entire precinct.

"We are right now operating very much one-dimensionally," Arradondo said. "[We’re] ensuring that we have enough officers to respond to violent crimes, as well as property crimes that may be in progress," he added.

Arradondo said that type of patrol has had a negative impact on the department’s community engagement. And because of the low staffing levels, certain programs aimed at curbing violent crime have been stopped.

To try and catch up on staffing levels, part of the proposed budget includes money for up to 160 new cadets.

According to Frey’s police budget presentation, from Jan. 1, 2020, MPD has incurred 296 sworn attrition. It states that has led to:

• An impact on the ability to meet public safety needs.
• Millions of dollars in workers’ compensation-related costs while facing millions more in hiring and training costs.

Part of the proposed budget would fund a wellness program aimed at helping slow down the number of workers’ compensation claims and officers’ quality of engagement with community members.

The city’s budget committee still needs to hear from more departments before a final 2022 budget is finalized – a final vote from the city council on that is expected in mid-December.