NEW YORK (PIX11) – The City Council overwhelmingly passed the How Many Stops Act on Tuesday despite pushback from Mayor Eric Adams and the NYPD.
Advocates argue there will now be more transparency about who police are stopping. Adams and the police said the bill would only increase critical response time.
NYPD officers will now have to record the race and gender of those they talk to during low-level interactions. They won't be asking for identification.
The data will be recorded in an officer's smartphone, which is already used for documentation purposes. The NYPD argued that the documentation process still isn't streamlined, and will use valuable time that can be used to fight crime.
Advocates said the information is needed since these types of stops historically impact Black and brown New Yorkers at higher levels.
The PBA said in a statement that the new law will both increase 911 response times and diminish police presence in neighborhoods.
"Despite the increased workload and the NYPD’s critically low staffing levels, we will continue to protect our communities to the best of our ability," said PBA President Patrick Hendry.
The new reporting rolls out in July.