Date: 5/18/11 Contact: Councilmember Brad Lander‘s office,

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Rachel Goodman, (718) 499 1090 or 646 319 8665

Press Release: New Report Shows District Attorneys in Brooklyn,

Outer Boroughs, Funded at Lower Share Than Manhattan

Independent Budget Office Analysis Shows

Long-Term Decline in Funding for Brooklyn District Attorney

Brooklyn, NY – The New York City Independent Budget Office today released a review of
District Attorney funding over the last 30 years which shows that the Brooklyn‘s share of total
funding has dramatically declined since 1980. This is despite the fact that Brooklyn has had a
+15% increase felony in arrests, compared to a -20% drop in Manhattan over the same period.

The report was requested by City Councilmember Brad Lander and was released on the day that
the City Council Public Safety Committee held its executive budget hearing on funding for
District Attorney offices.

The Independent Budget Office review noted that ―there is no formula in city or state law‖ for
the level of funding for District Attorneys. This lack of a formula has perpetuated an inequitable
system of funding for District Attorney staff.

Thanks to the leadership of Council Finance Committee Chairman Dominic Recchia,

Councilmembers Lew Fidler, Brad Lander and other Brooklyn Councilmembers, the Bloomberg
Administration created a new $6.6 million pot of ―workload funding‖ for the four outer borough
District Attorneys in the recently-released Executive Budget. However, a vastly disproportionate
share of District Attorney funds still remain with Manhattan – and this new funding stream will
not last beyond the coming budget.

―I am gratified that the Independent Budget Office report confirms what the people of Brooklyn
and I have been saying for years,‖ said Kings County District Attorney Charles J. Hynes. ―I
thank Councilmembers Lander, Recchia and Fidler for their efforts to bring the people of
Brooklyn our fair share of criminal justice funding because by every measure the District
Attorney‘s offices in counties other than Manhattan have been severely underfunded for years.‖

―The numbers are clear: Brooklyn and the other outer boroughs have been severely
underfunded,‖ said Councilmember Brad Lander. ―Our share of felony and misdemeanor arrests
has grown dramatically, while our share of funding has declined. I appreciate the new ‗workload
funding,‘ and know Kings County D.A. Hynes will put it right to work preventing crime. But we
still need a long-term solution that does not short-change the public safety of Brooklyn
residents.‖

"Everyone who watches Law and Order on TV knows that the criminal justice system has two
separate and distinct parts — a failure to fund the District Attorney‘s office is just as dangerous
as a failure to fund our police,‖ said Councilmember Lew Fidler. ―I am glad that some small
measure has been taken to address the inequity in funding for Brooklyn's office. Those funds are
essential to the efforts of Brooklyn's great D.A. Joe Hynes in not only prosecuting criminals, but
in preventing crime from occurring."

At the request of Councilmember Lander, the New York City Independent Budget Office
reviewed funding levels and expenditures for District Attorneys, total arrests by borough, and
other factors related to caseload.

Key findings from the report include:

 There is no formula in city or state law specifying the level of funding to be allocated to
district attorneys. Instead, the respective levels of city tax levy appropriations are
determined by the Mayor and City Council through the budget process.

 The largest change in the shares occurred in Brooklyn, which fell from 30 percent of the
citywide personnel services funding in 1980 to 26 percent this year.

 The share of city-funded personnel services appropriations for the Manhattan D.A. has
been relatively constant since 1980, even as Manhattan‘s share of felony and
misdemeanor arrests has declined.

 Felony arrests increased in all boroughs during the 1980‘s and generally fell thereafter.
With respect to borough shares, Manhattan accounted for 35 percent of felony arrests in
1980 but only 25 percent by 2009. The Bronx has seen the largest increase in its share.

 Over the same period, Manhattan‘s share of misdemeanor arrests fell almost by half,
from 48 percent in 1980 to 26 percent in 2009. Meanwhile, Brooklyn and the Bronx saw
significant increases in their respective shares.

 Even after adjusting for the subset of felony and misdemeanor arrests which prosecutors
decline to prosecute, the shift away from Manhattan in the borough shares of arrest
activity remains apparent.
The full study is available at http://www.ibo.nyc.ny.us/iboreports/may162011letterall.pdf. Doug
Turetsky, Communications Director for the Independent Budget Office is available to answer
questions at dougt@ibo.nyc.ny.us or 917-513-7488.
Manhattan’s Share of Arrests Has Dramatically Declined Since 1980

While Manhattan District Attorney’s Per Case Funding for Personnel

Has Risen Far Above Other District Attorneys

Source: Independent Budget Office; Dollar values shown are not adjusted for inflation.
Note: 2009 arrest numbers used with 2010 funding levels due to data availability