New York, NY –State Senator Kevin Parker and Assembly Member Catalina Cruz have introduced the Law Enforcement Residency Act (S8596-B/A10910), which will establish residency requirements for law enforcement officers hired after January 1, 2021 in cities with populations of over one million people. The bill aims to increase diversity within the force and ensure the officers patrolling New York streets are better connected with the communities they serve. 

According to Streetsblog, currently less than half of NYPD officers live within the five boroughs, with the majority of the force living in Long Island and Westchester. Research has demonstrated that the residency of the members of a police force correlates to the diversity of said police force, as African American and Latino officers are more likely to reside in the cities where they police, in comparison to their white counterparts. According to the 2010 Census, White residents account for 33% of New York City’s population, African American New Yorkers account for 23%, and 28% are Latinos. And while the NYPD has implemented efforts to diversify its force, more remains to be done to be truly reflective of the communities served. In a 2019 Enforcement Report from the NYPD, White police officers accounted for approximately 50% of the force, while African American and Latino officers made up approximately 15% and 28%, respectively. This new requirement would look to ensure recruitment within the city and encourage a truly diverse police force.

This bill also seeks to ensure the reinvestment of human capital and city-funded salaries back into the community. Those entrusted with patrolling New York City streets would be required to plant roots in the community, which would in turn provide them with a greater understanding of the needs, values, and cultures of the people who live there. Ninety-two percent of the NYPD's budget is funded by city taxes, with a majority used for salaries and wages. As New York City faces a budget crisis, salaries paid to NYPD officers would be reinvested into the five boroughs, helping to not only improve conditions in the community, but the relationship with local law enforcement.

Senator Parker had the following to say about his legislation, “It's critical that we cultivate better community connections between police and our city’s residents. We have to ensure that officers who are deployed to communities throughout New York City have a better understanding and respect for the culture of those living here. Police officers who live in the city they serve and belong to that community, are more inclined to be connected to the residents and their jobs, beyond a paycheck.”

The goal of the bill is to help police better serve communities. This is particularly important in communities of color, where we have seen a lack of positive police engagement. Senator Parker concluded “This bill would help establish a bond between police officers and the community they serve.”

“For decades, officers have patrolled, arrested, and brutalized members of our communities, while being shielded from the impact of their work when they clock out. This bill will mandate that those who are sworn to protect our families live right here next to them. Additionally, the fiscal implication of the bill ensures that taxpayer funds being used to finance officers’ salaries would be pumped back into the local economy, furthering the financial security of the five boroughs. I am proud to introduce legislation that not only generates greater police accountability, but also maintains New York’s hard-earned taxpayer dollars be recirculated within New York,” said Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz.

"The recent protests over the police killing of George Floyd and the broader issue of police abuse have sparked calls for reform. As someone who has dedicated his career to this cause, first as an officer in the NYPD, then as an elected official, I believe we have arrived at a critical moment for change. In a report we released in 2015 with Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and civil rights attorney Norman Siegel, which came out of a series of town halls held throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan, we found there was significant support for the idea that officers should live in the communities they police — not only because it would improve diversity within the ranks, but it also creates deeper bonds of trust between police and communities. I thank Senator Parker and Assembly Member Cruz for moving this important conversation forward with innovative policy ideas, and look forward to working with them to push for a more equitable and just police force that serves all New Yorkers," said Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams.

“NYC Action Lab has been supporting and championing legislation for the last two years, we commend the leadership today in announcing one critical reform of many needed to address the problematic structure of the NYPD. If police are forced to live in our communities the accountability, transparency, and oversight would be a forethought and not an afterthought. The NYPD has indoctrinated its officers with policies that target and criminalize vulnerable New Yorkers at every turn. This is one of many pieces of legislation New Yorkers of color need to start feeling safe. Let’s make New York safe by holding an $11 billion institution accountable for investing in our communities and not taking from them. Officers make six figure salaries and pay for property & taxes outside of our city. In a moment of economic collapse we need those tax dollars to stay in New York City and be used to build bridges toward better community-based policies and alternatives to incarceration for at-risk and vulnerable communities,” said Carlene Pinto, NYC Action Lab.

"We are continuing to fight for defunding the police and long-term solutions to invest in our communities, but residency requirements can be a useful change. In my neighborhood of Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, we have cops from Long Island who come in with absolutely no regard for us, the people they are policing. Maybe a residency requirement can change that, but on the other hand, the NYPD union just endorsed Trump so, it’s evident the entire system needs to be abolished eventually. In the midst of calls to defund the police due to increasing police violence, the nation's largest police force chooses to endorse a fascist, racist president. They would rather maintain their freedom to brutalize and murder at will than to ‘protect and serve’ communities as their slogan claims,"said VOCAL-NY Civil Rights Organizer Tatiana Hill.

"I grew up in Bed-Stuy long before gentrification, and police violence was the backdrop to our everyday existence," said Marvin Mayfield, Statewide Organizer at Center for Community Alternatives. "The only time we saw white faces in our community was when ACS was coming to take our children or NYPD was coming to take our men. Fundamentally, we need to divest from the NYPD and invest in community needs – from education to housing and healthcare – not criminalization and incarceration. While far more is needed, a residency requirement for NYPD officers would be a positive step as we work to dismantle systems and institutions that have inflicted violence and harm on Black and Brown communities."

“The NYPD Residency Bill tackles a foundational fracture in the legitimacy of the system: the overwhelming presence of commuter cops – outsiders unfamiliar with the communities they oversee with state-sanctioned violence. We call for the swift passage of this legislation, not as a comprehensive solution, but as a necessary step on the long road of progress.”

- Jerrell Gray, Political Relations Director, Strategy for Black Lives