Denver’s councilmembers on Monday defended about $42 million in proposed budget cuts aimed at cobbling together enough funds to pay for the thousands of immigrants who arrived in — or yet to come to — the city after illegally crossing the southern border. 

During the hearing, one councilmember blasted the “national media” for allegedly reporting that the city is “defunding” the police. Another councilmember lauded the finance department’s “creativity” in coming up with the money.  

Early in the crisis, Denver officials decided the city would assume the responsibility to temporarily house, feed and transport arriving immigrants. That decision will cost Denver $90 million this year, according to estimates from the Johnston administration.

The biggest budget cuts, in terms of dollar amounts, would come from public safety spending, notably the Denver Police Department, which stands to lose $8.4 million, by far the largest dollar amount. As a percentage, this represents 1.9% of the department’s total approved budget for 2024.

Itemizing the proposed budget reduction, Councilmember Kevin Flynn said about $1.7 million in “savings” was found by delaying furniture purchases. A plan to search for a new home for the DPD Mounted Patrol — totaling $1.6 million — was also reallocated, he noted. 

“To the national media that have been reporting that we are defunding the police, we are not. If we were, I wouldn’t be voting for this,” Flynn said. “What we are doing is compiling vacancy savings, and nothing that had been planned to happen this year will not be done because of these recessions.”

The city’s Department of Finance had found about $20 million by not filling vacant positions, imposing a city-wide hiring freeze. This accounts for about 43% of the total reallocations.

The Common Sense Institute, which published a brief summary of the cuts with some analysis included, noted that the proposed reduction to the police agency is roughly the same amount as the $8.2 million in “investment to add 167 new police recruits,” which the city was earlier touting. 

“The police cuts evaporate a previously budgeted plan to add new police recruits, cutting more than the city had been planning to spend on additional recruitment,” the group said. 

City officials earlier said some $3.2 million in police academy costs will be absorbed by the airport.

Since Denver police officers are expected to patrol the airport, which is owned and operated by the city, the costs of training them is technically an airport related expenditure. To officials, this satisfies federal regulations stipulating that revenue from the airport may only be used to fund airport projects and activities.

Such “creativity” from the Department of Finance drew praise from Councilmember Sarah Parady. 

“Our budget has a degree of complexity, having this issue where we have to be really thoughtful about which funds we can use to pay for which things,” she said. “I could see in this round of budgeting the Department of Finance and city agencies were being really thoughtful about where we might have an abundance of funding.”

City officials earlier insisted that the cuts will not affect public-facing services.

Already, Denver faces service reductions at recreation centers and at Department of Motor Vehicles offices. So far this year, the city reported it has spent $25 million in its response to the immigrant crisis. 

Currently, the city is providing shelter to 791 immigrants. As of 11 a.m. Monday, 27 more arrived, according to a city dashboard.