Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch addressed a new class of NYPD recruits on Wednesday, where she touted that the department has hired more than 4,000 officers this year and chided critics who argue the force is losing more police than it’s able to hire.
“There are people who would have you believe that policing is a profession in retreat,” Tisch told the new class of recruits at the training academy in Queens. “Let me be clear: That narrative is wrong.”
The NYPD's head count became a hot-button issue during this year’s mayoral race, when Andrew Cuomo vowed to hire 5,000 new officers, while Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said he would maintain the uniformed force at its current budgeted level of about 35,000.
Just before the election, Mayor Eric Adams, a former NYPD captain, said he allocated funding in the city budget to add 5,000 officers to the department by 2029. But according to data compiled by the comptroller’s office, Adams' administration struggled to maintain the city’s budgeted head count for NYPD officers during his four years in office, even after the city lowered its educational and background standards for police officers.
“We welcome our new police officers, who put it all on the line to protect their fellow New Yorkers, and thank them for their commitment to this great city," Adams said in a statement.
The city’s largest police union has repeatedly claimed attrition is a persistent issue. Union leaders have long said working conditions and officer pay — along with shifting political attitudes toward police — have led to low levels of recruitment and retention among rookie cops.
In a statement released Wednesday morning, the Police Benevolent Association said the number of officers who have quit or filed for retirement in the past 12 months is more than 3,400, citing data from the Police Pension Fund.
PBA President Patrick Hendry said in a statement that officers are lured to other law enforcement jobs that offer better benefits.
“Today, too many of our finest recruits are viewing the NYPD as a stepping-stone to a better law enforcement job, one with a more manageable workload, less demonization and better pay," he said. "In addition to getting recruits in the door, our city leaders need to work with us to keep them on the job.”
Tisch took aim at that argument on Wednesday.
“This year, the NYPD did not experience an unexpected or extreme wave of departures. Retirements this year were exactly what we projected based on the 3,700 officers that we hired 20 years ago in 2005,” she said. “Despite what critics say, the number of people leaving the department before they are eligible for their full pension is down by more than 40% since 2022.”
According to data provided by the NYPD, the department hired 4,056 uniformed members this year — which officials said was a department record — and will have a head count of 34,727, including the recruits who entered the police academy on Wednesday. That is the highest level of staffing since May 2022, and near the budgeted level of 34,975, according to the NYPD’s data.
In her remarks, Tisch added that the department is outpacing attrition by more than 800 officers. The figures provided by the department show that 3,228 officers left the department so far this year, 827 fewer than the number hired.
This story has been updated with additional information.
