Cops say the controversial NYPD bill that would force officers to document even the most minor interactions will make the city less safe and hamper investigations — especially during major incidents like the West Side Highway terror attack in 2017.
Advocates of the legislation — dubbed the “How Many Stops Act” — argue that requiring officers to record the “apparent” age, sex, race and ethnicity of the people they talk to will boost police transparency.
But street cops say the bill — which the City Council is pushing forward despite Mayor Eric Adams’ veto Friday — will waste their time by forcing them to record irrelevant information instead of doing police work.
Sources pointed to big incidents — such as the April 2022 mass shooting on a Brooklyn subway car that left 10 wounded — as prime examples of how the mandate would bog down cops and hamper urgent investigations.
“I would’ve spent my whole day taking information from witnesses instead of looking for a mass shooter while the citizens of New York were panicking,” a Brooklyn cop said.
Another police source brought up the 2017 West Side Highway attack, when a terrorist driving a Home Depot truck killed eight people and wounded several others.
“In situations where quick and decisive action is essential, such legislative constraints may pose a serious challenge to the effective functioning of law enforcement agencies, potentially compromising public safety in the process,” the source said.
“In the aftermath of such incidents, law enforcement agencies like the NYPD often rely on proactive measures, including stops and checks, to prevent similar acts of terrorism.”
The bill “could impede the ability of the NYPD to conduct thorough and timely investigations, hindering their capacity to identify and intervene in potential threats,” the source added.
Another cop said the bill discourages community members from speaking to the police, which could rob the NYPD of opportunities to learn which criminals are prowling the neighborhood.
“It effectively puts up a barrier between the cops and community,” the officer said.
A fourth officer called the bill “ridiculous,” and said politicians were using it to search for some sort of smoking gun.
“If it really is going to include having to note down everything about people you asked during a canvas, that’s going to be a real problem. There could be 35 of those in a tour,” the source said.
“[If you add] having to do more reports to the already low manpower caused by so few people wanting to be cops — as a result of legislation just like this — it will just mean longer response times.”
The Council passed the bill in December with a veto-proof, 35-9 majority, and seven members abstaining.
Adams vetoed the bill last week, saying it would mire cops in paperwork and send overtime through the roof — and setting up a showdown with the Council.
“We don’t oppose the entire bill they presented — we oppose this part of it,” Adams said, referencing how the measure will make cops record basic information about those involved in low-level, so-called level one stops.
“Good faith, but the practicality in application of it is not realistic,” Hizzoner continued. “It’s going to cause millions of reports being generated, and it’s going to drive up overtime.”
The council struck back Sunday, issuing a statement that said the Adams administration has ignored the fact that level one stops “often include instances when officers are asking someone where they are going or for their identification absent criminal suspicion, something the Council understands.”
“The differences between Level 1, 2, and 3 stops are often not apparent to New Yorkers who are impacted by these daily disruptions, underscoring the importance of transparency that the Council’s bill would achieve,” the statement said.
Police Commissioner Edward Caban said at a Sunday press conference that the bill would make officers record millions of interactions.
Those requirements, he said, would be “staggering.”