Federal officials would bypass states like New York that have policies viewed as soft on crime and give law enforcement funding directly to localities under a new bill pitched by the Empire State’s GOP delegation.
The bill, sponsored by upstate Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY) and shared exclusively with The Post, would distribute some federal law enforcement funding directly to localities if states have laws on the books like New York’s Clean Slate Act and loose bail laws.
“Taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook to prop up a regime in Albany that is making us less safe,” Molinaro wrote in a statement to The Post.
“This bill will take funds from Albany and reinvest them directly into the local police, courts, and governments that are actually doing the work to restore public safety,” he continued.
The legislation is co-sponsored by all but one of New York’s Republican members of Congress.
The bill, which is light on details, would require the Department of Justice to withhold funding meant specifically for the states if they don’t allow judges to base bail eligibility on a “dangerousness” standard or if they have “a general policy providing for the sealing of the criminal records of felons.”
New York is the only state in the country that does not have a “dangerousness standard,” something lawmakers ditched in the 70s. Last year, the Empire State signed into law the Clean Slate Act, which seals someone’s criminal history for purposes unrelated to law enforcement and some background checks.
Crime and public safety continue to be one of the most pressing issues on voters’ minds heading into November.
In a Siena College poll conducted last month, 54% of likely New York voters said crime has gotten worse in the last year.
“If Albany politicians like John Mannion insist on supporting pro-criminal policies like cashless bail that abandon our families, then federal funding should go directly to the men and women in blue who put their lives on the line to keep us safe,” Central New York Rep. Brandon Williams wrote about his Democratic challenger, state Sen. John Mannion (D-Onondaga), in a statement to The Post.
It’s a familiar playbook for Republicans. Former Long Island Rep. Lee Zeldin campaigned against Gov. Kathy Hochul by messaging heavily on crime in 2022. Democrats have since sought to try to regain ground on the narrative around public safety.
Josh Riley, the Democratic trying for a second time to defeat Molinaro, has previously said he supports the Clean Slate Act.
“There’s a lot of things we need to do around the criminal justice system, both to keep our community safe and also make sure we’re addressing a lot of the inequalities we’ve seen over the years,” Riley said in a 2022 interview with WSKG News.
“We should fully fund law enforcement. I will continue to support efforts that accomplish that goal,” Riley wrote in a statement to The Post Sunday.
The Republicans’ bill is almost certain to languish in the Democratic-controlled Senate even if it makes it out of the House before years’ end.