Denver plan to slash police and fire department budgets to pay for migrant crisis clears first hurdle

Denver City Council members voted unanimously on Wednesday to advance Democratic Mayor Mike Johnston’s proposed $41 million budget cuts to fund the city’s response to its undocumented immigrant crisis. 

Johnston’s plan includes cuts to multiple city departments, including police and fire, as well as his own. 

Migrants rest at a makeshift shelter on Jan. 6, 2023, in Denver. (AP Photo/Thomas Peipert, File)

The mayor’s office will be absorbing the largest percentage of the cuts — about 9.6%, which comes out to be about $164,000. But broken down into dollars and cents, it’s Denver’s police and fire departments that will be hit the hardest. The police department is expecting an $8.4 million cut, the sheriff’s office will see $3.8 million less in its budget, and the fire

Continue reading