Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Speaker Dennis Bonnen held a press conference yesterday in Fort Worth where they announced a legislative proposal to discourage defunding law enforcement in Texas.
With this proposal, any city that defunds its police department will have its property tax revenue frozen at the current level. The governor, lieutenant governor and speaker were joined by Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price, State Sen. Jane Nelson and Representatives Giovanni Capriglione, Charlie Geren, Craig Goldman and Stephanie Klick.
“Part of our job as state leaders is to ensure the safety and security of all Texans, and we will not allow this core function to be undermined by cities that seek to defund and dismantle law enforcement agencies that have a sworn duty to protect our communities,” Abbott said. “Defunding the police puts Texans in danger and invites lawlessness into our cities, and cities that endanger their residents should not be able to turn around and raise more taxes from those same Texans. I strongly urge the Texas Legislature to take up this important issue next session to protect their constituents and ensure law enforcement have the resources and support they need to protect their communities.”
Price said: “It’s an honor to host Governor Abbott in Fort Worth for an announcement in support of funding public safety. As I have previously stated, I do not support defunding the Fort Worth Police Department and will not entertain any conversation around defunding, or even dramatically reducing, the budget for FWPD.”
“In July, Fort Worth residents voted with overwhelming support to dedicate a half-cent sales tax to our Crime Control and Prevention District for another 10 years,” Price said. “Using that funding, Fort Worth will successfully respond to concerns about police-community relations by prioritizing enhanced public safety, training and other measures that will ensure our police department is serving our residents to the highest degree.”
Source: The Texas Police News
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