Mayor de Blasio and Police Commissioner O’Neill spent months lobbying congressional delegation, White House officials for reimbursement
The national bipartisan budget agreement introduced Sunday evening includes funding to cover the cost New York City has incurred securing Trump Tower. The agreement, which will be voted on this week, includes $20 million for costs incurred between Election Day and Inauguration Day and $41 million for all costs after Inauguration Day. This funding is in addition to the $7 million that was allocated last fall.
Mayor de Blasio and Police Commissioner James O’Neill have worked closely with the New York City Congressional Delegation the past several months to secure reimbursement, including several trips to Washington, D.C. to lobby for the funding.
“We are getting what we are owed,” said Mayor de Blasio. “That's good news for our city and the hardworking police officers faced with this unprecedented security challenge. We could not have done this without our congressional delegation, including U.S. Representatives Nita Lowey, Grace Meng, Jose Serrano, Dan Donovan and Carolyn Maloney. They worked tirelessly over the past several months to make sure these costs are paid for by the federal government."
The city spent $24 million protecting Trump Tower and the First Family from Election Day through Inauguration Day. It is estimated that the city spends, on average, $127,000 to $146,000 a day for the NYPD to protect the First Family when President Trump is not in town. It is anticipated those costs will increase significantly whenever the President is in New York City, bringing NYPD’s daily average cost to $308,000.
