Boston city council members considering cutting police budget by $18 million, police union slams

Boston city council members have proposed reducing the police budget by $18 million, which would represent the third year in a row where the police budget was cut. 

"Defund the police" was part of the Black Lives Matter movement agenda after the death of George Floyd in 2020.

Larry Calderone, head of the police union, argued that the budget should be increased from its current level, calling the possibility of defunding the police an "absurdly irresponsible" move.

"With social unrest so high and police departments across the country struggling to hire and retain officers, any talk of defunding the police is absurdly irresponsible for the citizens of Boston," said Calderone, president of the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association, according to The Boston Herald. "We should be increasing the police budget and hiring more officers, not decreasing it."

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has proposed a full budget for the 2025 fiscal year but it has not been approved yet.

Some city council members are proposing to amend Wu's budget to include the $18 million budget reduction for the police department.