On Wednesday, the New York City Council voted to pass a controversial bill that would require all NYPD officers to file reports about every low-level stop, including when an officer asks for ID or where they’re going. Under the legislation, the NYPD will have to post data on “level one” and “level two” stops every quarter on its website.
The bill was opposed by Mayor Eric Adams and the police union, as they said it would not help with public safety. However, because the bill has a veto-proof majority behind it, there is little Mayor Adams can do.
The How Many Stops Act was sponsored by city Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. One of the bill’s provisions would mandate a few questions be asked at every stop.
“The bill we’re actually passing is not controversial at all. It was actually part of the remedial process recommendations when we dealt with the abuses of stop, question and frisk,” Williams said. “It’s literally four or five questions, one of which the police department asked us to put on, on a dropdown menu that people can just tap on their phone after the stop has occurred. It’s literally 20 to 30 seconds.”
The bill’s opponents, including the Police Benevolent Association, say it will hamper response times even more for the short-staffed NYPD.
