New York – The New York City Independent Budget Office today released a review of District Attorney funding over the last 30 years which shows that the Brooklyn’s share of total funding has dramatically declined since 1980. This is despite the fact that Brooklyn has had a +15% increase felony in arrests, compared to a -20% drop in Manhattan over the same period.
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The report was requested by City Councilmember Brad Lander and was released on the day that the City Council Public Safety Committee held its executive budget hearing on funding for District Attorney offices.
The Independent Budget Office review noted that “there is no formula in city or state law” for the level of funding for District Attorneys. This lack of a formula has perpetuated an inequitable system of funding for District Attorney staff.
Thanks to the leadership of Council Finance Committee Chairman Dominic Recchia, Councilmembers Lew Fidler, Brad Lander and other Brooklyn Councilmembers, the Bloomberg Administration created a new $6.6 million pot of “workload funding” for the four outer borough District Attorneys in the recently-released Executive Budget. However, a vastly disproportionate share of District Attorney funds still remain with Manhattan – and this new funding stream will not last beyond the coming budget.
“I am gratified that the Independent Budget Office report confirms what the people of Brooklyn and I have been saying for years,” said Kings County District Attorney Charles J. Hynes. “I thank Councilmembers Lander, Recchia and Fidler for their efforts to bring the people of Brooklyn our fair share of criminal justice funding because by every measure the District Attorney’s offices in counties other than Manhattan have been severely underfunded for years.”
“The numbers are clear: Brooklyn and the other outer boroughs have been severely underfunded,” said Councilmember Brad Lander. “Our share of felony and misdemeanor arrests has grown dramatically, while our share of funding has declined. I appreciate the new ‘workload funding,’ and know Kings County D.A. Hynes will put it right to work preventing crime. But we still need a long-term solution that does not short-change the public safety of Brooklyn residents.”
“Everyone who watches Law and Order on TV knows that the criminal justice system has two separate and distinct parts — a failure to fund the District Attorney’s office is just as dangerous as a failure to fund our police,” said Councilmember Lew Fidler. “I am glad that some small measure has been taken to address the inequity in funding for Brooklyn’s office. Those funds are essential to the efforts of Brooklyn’s great D.A. Joe Hynes in not only prosecuting criminals, but in preventing crime from occurring.”
At the request of Councilmember Lander, the New York City Independent Budget Office reviewed funding levels and expenditures for District Attorneys, total arrests by borough, and other factors related to caseload.
Key findings from the report include:
• There is no formula in city or state law specifying the level of funding to be allocated to district attorneys. Instead, the respective levels of city tax levy appropriations are determined by the Mayor and City Council through the budget process.
• The largest change in the shares occurred in Brooklyn, which fell from 30 percent of the citywide personnel services funding in 1980 to 26 percent this year. The Special Narcotics Prosecutor’s share increased from 3 percent to 7 percent of citywide funding.
• The share of city-funded personnel services appropriations for the Manhattan D.A. has been relatively constant since 1980, even as Manhattan’s share of felony and misdemeanor arrests has declined.
• Felony arrests increased in all boroughs during the 1980’s and generally fell thereafter. With respect to borough shares, Manhattan accounted for 35 percent of felony arrests in 1980 but only 25 percent by 2009. The Bronx has seen the largest increase in its share.
• Over the same period, Manhattan’s share of misdemeanor arrests fell almost by half, from 48 percent in 1980 to 26 percent in 2009. Meanwhile, Brooklyn and the Bronx saw significant increases in their respective shares.
• Even after adjusting for the subset of felony and misdemeanor arrests which prosecutors decline to prosecute, the shift away from Manhattan in the borough shares of arrest activity remains apparent.
oh grow up Manhattan is sucking the air out of the city remember the first snow storm while Manhattan was cleaned immediately Brooklyn didn’t see a snow plow for several days all these politicians are the same
I think ,if they stop to invite everybody on Jury Duty services, and pay $40 per person per day for people who is from begging not interested to serve – will save allot of money.
I got a simple solution to the problem.
anybody found guilty on charges brought by the DA should be required to pay a fee for the DA’s expenses
My friend was robbed at gun point in Marine Park a month ago, the ganef was caught by police and DA let him go on a bail.