Metro leaders say surplus aid could help recruit more police officers

A group of Minneapolis and Hennepin County leaders say a one-time infusion of state money could be critical in the effort to replenish their beleaguered agencies with more officers.

In a news conference Wednesday, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Police Chief Brian O'Hara and Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt stood with Twin Cities area mayors and other elected officials in a show of support of Gov. Tim Walz's proposed $550 million in public safety aid for cities, counties and tribal governments throughout Minnesota. About $34 million of that would go to Minneapolis and $25 million to Hennepin County to be spent at their discretion on public safety.

Witt and O'Hara said the money could help ramp up recruitment — a challenge for both of their departments in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd and unrest that followed.

"Every week the department continues to shrink," O'Hara said. Minneapolis is beginning to see more applicants, he said, but the state money would allow them to market good policing and compete with pay in other cities.

In the Twin Cities and across the country, law enforcement officers are in short supply. Since the 2020 riots and torching of the Third Precinct headquarters, a record number of Minneapolis police officers have quit or gone on long-term leave, and the department has struggled to find replacements.

As of last month, 590 police officers worked for the Minneapolis Police Department, down from nearly 900 in 2020. The sheriff's department is authorized for 846 positions, and currently 765 are filled.

At the same time, violent crime — especially involving guns — has soared to the highest rates in decades. Frey attributed a decline in some metrics over the past year to partnerships with state and local agencies and help from the U.S. Attorney's Office. But Frey said that progress "is not sustainable" under a system that relies too heavily on long hours and overtime pay for what remains of the police force. The city also needs money to help implement a court-enforceable agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, the terms of which were announced last month.

"The bottom line here is we need additional assistance," Frey said.

The money could also fund public safety initiatives outside of police, such as hiring social workers and combating the drug epidemic in Minnesota, said Hennepin County Commissioner Jeffrey Lunde.

"It is not a crime to be addicted; it is not a crime to be homeless; and it is not a crime to be suffering from mental health," he said. "We need to respond with resources and make sure they get the help they need."

Walz nearly doubled his request for public safety aid for local governments, following a forecasted $19 billion in the state's surplus in February, to be used for hiring, buying more equipment or working with community groups on strategies to address crime. Walz will have to negotiate the two-year budget proposal with other Democratic leaders in order to get it passed. The legislative session is required to adjourn May 22.