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Q&A
Council Member Salaam questions NYPD officials on overtime management and budget allocation
0:52:26
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3 min
Council Member Yusef Salaam engages in a Q&A session with NYPD officials, including Commissioner Jessica Tisch and Deputy Commissioner Kristine Ryan, regarding the department's overtime management and budget allocation. The discussion covers recent changes in overtime approval processes, budget distribution, and the challenges of allocating overtime funds to specific precincts or units.
- NYPD implemented a new overtime management plan in January, setting clear thresholds for uniformed and civilian members.
- The average 911 call is answered in less than six seconds, according to Commissioner Tisch.
- Deputy Commissioner Ryan explains that 98% of uniform overtime budget is held centrally due to the unpredictable nature of overtime assignments across different events and locations.
Yusef Salaam
0:52:26
I wanna ask about overtime.
0:52:30
Recently there was a scandal involving NYPD's former chief of department.
0:52:34
We would like to hear about NYPD's process for approving overtime going forward.
Jessica Tisch
0:52:40
Oh, so in January of this year we instituted an overtime management plan in the department where we set very clear thresholds for uniformed and civilian members of service on the civilian side based on title and on the uniform side based on type of assignment.
0:53:03
Is it operational?
0:53:05
Is it investigative?
0:53:06
Or is it administrative?
0:53:08
We also have our first deputy commissioner and our deputy commissioner of management and budget pouring over all of the overtime records to ensure that each officer is not, no officer is exceeding those overtime thresholds.
0:53:26
We have created a new position in each command which is someone assigned, an executive, among their duties assigned to ensuring compliance with the overtime rules.
0:53:39
And when our first deputy commissioner or deputy commissioner of management and budget see anomalies, that's who they will reach out to.
0:53:48
But their work has been extraordinary.
0:53:53
It takes an incredible amount of doggedness and effort not just to set the standards but to make sure that the entire department is conforming to them.
0:54:05
And I believe that we now have the processes and procedures that are required to effectively and responsibly manage overtime at the New York City Police Department.
0:54:20
And I'm sorry, I found the answer to one of your previous questions.
0:54:24
The average 911 call is answered in less than six seconds.
Yusef Salaam
0:54:38
Well definitely thank you for that answer.
0:54:42
Why is 98% of the NYPD's uniform overtime budget still held in the chief of department's unit of appropriation?
0:54:50
Wouldn't budgeting overtime in other areas be an additional check on overtime spending and approvals?
Kristine Ryan
0:54:56
So the reason for that is because officers are often working overtime outside of their home command if it's a parade, if it's a protest, if it's a certain event.
0:55:05
So we budget it centrally because we honestly don't know in the beginning exactly which officer is going to be doing which overtime, so the distribution would just not be realistic across each of the individual structures for the commands.
Yusef Salaam
0:55:23
Would NYPD work with OMB to budget overtime cost at the precincts and unit level at the unit level instead of holding most of the overtime funding in one budget code?
Kristine Ryan
0:55:35
So because of the challenges I just indicated that would not enable us to manage overtime, it would not be reflective of how the overtime actually gets utilized.