Citizens Going to Drastic Lengths Such as ‘Tax and Fee Strike’ Until Leadership Refunds Law Enforcement Agencies

Cities with the most liberal leadership that have called for defunding the police have experienced skyrocketing crime. Somehow no one is shocked but the leaders, who are now forced to refund their departments. According to a report from Fox Business, cities including New York, Oakland, Baltimore, Minneapolis and Los Angeles are “planning to reinstate tens of millions for the construction of new police precincts, increasing police department budgets, among other plans to bankroll more efforts to confront the uptick in crime.”

The Wall Street Journal reported that nationally, several of the largest local law enforcement agencies, city and county leaders are asking for funding increases for 9 of the 12 departments where next year’s budgets have already been proposed, with increases ranging from 1% to 6%.

Residents and businesses have been forced to make demands of their leadership and push back on defunding the police. “A group of 37 restaurants and small businesses in Baltimore recently sent a letter to the mayor, city council, and state’s attorney threatening to go on a tax and fee strike until leadership starts enforcing the law and addressing crime, drug dealing and other issues.”

A similar incident occurred in Minneapolis, where residents filed a lawsuit against the city for failing to keep people safe. PJ Media reports that according to the lawsuit, the city hasn’t met its minimum ratio of officers per citizen as required by the city charter. An Atlanta community is creating its own police department in response to the leadership’s defunding efforts.

With homicides alone up 24% since only January, will a sudden cry to “re-fund” be too little, too late? To some degree, the unsupportive damage has been done. The Associated Press reported that “law enforcement agencies across the country experienced a wave of retirements and departures and are struggling or recruit the next generation of police officers.”