Milwaukee Police Funding Increasing After 2020 "Defund the Police" Cuts
'Rape, robbery, human trafficking, burglary, non-fatal shootings, and carjackings are all up in 2023 over 2022 YTD'
In September 2020, then-Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett proposed cutting 120 police officers from about 1,800 budgeted positions in the 2021 budget.
Barrett proposed the cuts, in part, due to budget constraints amid a national and local clamor to divert resources from policing just four months after George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis police.
As violent crime continues to skyrocket in Milwaukee, the tone has now changed. Just a month ago, Mayor Cavalier Johnson gave a speech on his 2024 budget where he said, "I am not cutting police sworn strength."
Johnson even mentioned in his speech new forms of revenue the city could use to hire new police officers. Johnson mentioned an increase in sales taxes that had been approved that the city could tap for more police funding.
In July 2023, the city enacted a 2% tax on most sales in the city of Mil