Completed Analysis of Philadelphia Police Budget and Spending

Completed Analysis of Philadelphia Police Budget and Spending

Stout was engaged by The Controller’s Office of Philadelphia to conduct a review and analysis of the Philadelphia Police Department and Other Related Police Spending. Stout completed the review and analysis with support from the Center for Policing Equity and Horsey, Buckner & Heffler. The review sought to understand the PPD’s deployment of budgeted funds and resources as well as to recommend improvements to the department’s strategy of resource allocation.

The review included a detailed report on current challenges to PPD operations. The report also recommended ways PPD could allocate its resources to improve the department’s operational efficiency. Recommendations included the following:

  • Constructing a budget based on needs specifically communicated by the communities the PPD serves, and determining personnel/program requirements based on the stated needs of the community
  • Establishing the amount of labor needed by PPD to operate effectively in each district, and understanding which roles must be staffed by sworn personnel and which roles may be able to be staffed by civilians
  • Building the community’s perception of police legitimacy and credibility through ongoing conversations with residents, soliciting and analyzing detailed feedback that can directly inform how and where to allocate resources
  • Assessing recruitment and retention strategies through comprehensive data collection, examining strategies that demonstrate success and the points in which candidates often exit the hiring process
  • Modernizing systems and processes in order to remove both inefficiencies and redundancies within PPD, such as removing unnecessary paper processes and utilizing software and other technology for improved communication and personnel data management
  • Integrating strategies developed from community feedback with comprehensive internal and external data that can create iterative processes of review, strategy development, evaluation, and refinement

The report and its recommendations are meant to provide PPD actionable insights to both improve public safety outcomes and build legitimacy with the communities that it serves through effective dialogue with the residents about community concerns and potential solutions that could successfully address them.

Read the full report, including PPD’s response: Review and Analysis of the Philadelphia Police Department and Other Related Police Spending