Fair Budget El Cerrito

El Cerrito spends more money on police per capita than 94% of American cities, totalling nearly one third of its annual budget. The city is in such dire financial straits that even the California State Auditor has called for the city to reduce its spending on police.

When cities experience tough financial times, community services are often the first to go, while police budgets are usually protected at all costs. That’s why East Bay DSA members living in El Cerrito are proactively organizing the “Fair Budget El Cerrito” campaign, to fight for a budget that prioritizes the needs of working class El Cerritans over a bloated police budget. We’re a project of the chapter Racial Solidarity Committee that began in the fall of 2021. We are also exploring non-carceral alternatives to policing that El Cerrito or Contra Costa County could pursue or expand.

The city will be voting on its annual budget in May or June of 2022- if you’re interested in joining the effort to reduce the police budget and increase investments in non-police city staff and services, sign up here to get more involved!