How much more are you willing to pay in taxes to cover APD's optional arrests?

How much of your gasoline and grocery budget will you set aside for the tax man this year because of Austin police Chief Acevedo's decision to have Austin police officers arrest over 15,000 people every year in Austin, 37% of all of APD's arrests, when the Texas legislature says those people could have received a citation?

Thanks to Scott Henson at Grits for Breakfast, and to the Austin American Statesman Editorial Board, for pointing out that the City of Austin and the Travis County budget are both being strained by the police.

If Austin police get the huge raises they are demanding, that will mean more cuts in library hours, parks, social services and other city functions next year, or higher city taxes. At the same time, Travis County is proposing to raise taxes to pay for increased incarceration caused by APD's optional arrests.

How much more do you want to pay for Chief Acevedo's unnecessary arrests? When the city pays police more, we lose library, parks and road money. When you pay more in taxes, you have less for groceries, gasoline, electricity and the rest of life's necessities. ... All so police can brag about high arrest numbers without solving even half of the violent crime in this town.

You can make a difference! Click here to contact Chief Acevedo - let him know it's time to stop wasting time and money with unnecessary arrests.