Friday, January 21, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
In effort to support the men and women in law enforcement who work tirelessly to protect our communities, Senator Wendy Rogers (R-6) is introducing legislation to make sure they have the financial support they need to carry out their jobs in keeping crime down.
SB 1354 would allow the Attorney General, or a member of the governing body who objects to an imposed operating budget cut to law enforcement by a city or town, to file a petition with the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council for a hearing to determine whether the budget cut is justified. The Governor’s Regulatory Review Council would ultimately have the final say on approving, amending or modifying the budget.
If the budget adopted by the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council decreases the law enforcement agency’s spending plan by 10% or more over the previous year, then the State Treasurer would have the authority to withhold any state funds from the city or town equal to the budget cut, until the law enforcement agency’s budget has been restored.
“These anti-police campaigns we’ve seen unfold across the country in recent years must end. We have experienced the largest rise in violent crime in our nation’s history,” said Senator Rogers. “Law enforcement agencies today are scrambling to find men and women who want to wear the badge, but a lack of support from cities, towns and counties has led to major staffing shortages, low morale and an increase in law enforcement suicides. Furthermore, response times have dramatically increased for crime victims. The insanity must end. We want to make sure our law enforcement officers have the tools and resources to prevent a tsunami of lethal violence in Arizona, as we are seeing in other parts of the country.”
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