In mid-November the Center for Popular Democracy will release a report that looks closely at how much money key cities and counties invest in policing and incarceration versus how much they choose to invest in education, housing, services for youth and children, and transportation. The report will elevate examples of community groups engaging in dynamic campaigns to re-think state and city investments, and rethink what safety looks like.

The report analyzes the municipal budgets of New York City, Chicago, Detroit, Contra Costa County, Minneapolis, Orlando, Baltimore, Atlanta and St. Louis to uncover how much taxpayer money is going to fund often inhumane and constantly ineffective policing and incarceration practices. The report also details examples of communities and organizations developing effective alternatives to policing and explores extensive research that suggests long-term investments in youth development, employment, mental health services and transformative justice practices are in fact more effective at decreasing crime and increasing the wellbeing and vitality of communities.

The United States, at the federal, state and local level, has invested trillions of dollars in police, jails and weapons targeted at low income communities, while neglecting to invest in the education, employment or health of these same communities. The United States spends $100 billion annually on policing alone — this despite a steady decline in crime rates.  Due to shrinking state and local governments, more spending on policing and incarceration means fewer resources for other public safety strategies that are better for communities.  

According to our research municipalities are spending anywhere from 12-60 percent of their general operating funds on policing and corrections. In Baltimore, more of the city’s general operating funds go to policing than education, health and re-entry services combined. This trend has manifested across the country at different levels of government. For instance state spending on higher education rose by less than 6 percent between 1986 and 2013.  But corrections spending jumped by 141 percent.  

The report is part of CPD’s ongoing work in partnership with a number of its community-based affiliate organizations, which pushes for divestment from the criminalization of Black and brown communities and investment in policies and strategies that instead make communities safe. In addition to the report we will be hosting a webinar sharing the findings and the inspiring work of communities across the country to re-think safety and well-being.