Mayor Adams Announces Expanded Eligibility Requirements and Continued Funding Has Put City on Path to 35,000 Uniformed NYPD Officers by Fall 2026

April 30, 2025

Since Expanding Eligibility, Over 9,700 Individuals Filed to Take Latest
Police Exam, Daily Average Applications Have Increased Nearly 45 Percent 

Over 4,000 Previously Ineligible Applicants Have Moved to Reopen Their Cases,
Representing Renewed Interest in Becoming Officers 

Part of Mayor Adams’ “Budget Week,” Unveiling “Best Budget Ever,” Which Invests in
Affordability, Public Safety, and Quality-of-Life Issues New Yorkers Care Most About

NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced that the New York City Police Department (NYPD) uniform officer headcount is on the path to reach 35,000 by the fall of 2026, thanks to expanded eligibility requirements recently announced and Mayor Adams’ continued funding commitments to hire more officers. Mayor Adams also swore in more than 670 new recruits to the police force today. The new recruits join the already 2,200 probationary officers that were sworn in between July 2024 and January 2025 — 600 of these recruits have already graduated, 600 are set to graduate in early May 2025, and 1,000 recruits remain in training.  

The Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Executive Budget — the “Best Budget Ever” — includes $3.4 billion for approximately 34,000 police officers, including four academy classes, and FY 2027 is funded to support a uniform force of 35,000. To bolster recruitment and hiring, the Adams administration announced expanded eligibility to become a police officer earlier this year.  

“When we came into office over three years ago, we had a clear mission and a clear mandate: Drive down crime and make sure every New Yorker feels safe,” said Mayor Adams. “Our success depends on whether we have enough officers to do this critical work, which is why, in February, we announced expanded eligibility requirements to become an officer. The results have been astounding – with daily applications up 45 percent, it’s clear New Yorkers are eager to join the NYPD. Combined with continued funding, we’re proud to announce that New York City is on the path to having 35,000 uniform members of the NYPD by fall of 2026. Congratulations to all of the officers sworn in today and on behalf of 8.5 million New Yorkers, thank you for choosing to serve.”

 “This new recruit class reflects the surge in interest we've seen to join the police force since expanding eligibility,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. “We’re not just growing the NYPD — we’re making sure the department has the people it needs to meet this moment. By modernizing our standards and opening more doors, we’re giving thousands of New Yorkers a real opportunity to serve. Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, we’re focused on execution, getting the right people through the door and giving them the tools, training, and support to succeed.” 

In February 2025, after Mayor Adams directed her to develop a plan to recruit and retain more officers, NYPD Commissioner Tisch announced a three-part plan to attract more candidates and modernize education requirements to address the hiring crisis the NYPD has faced in recent years. The NYPD was one of the only remaining big-city municipal police forces in the country with a college credit requirement — setting up the NYPD to not only compete for applicants with other local agencies, but also with other major cities nationwide. As a result of the changes announced in February, the department reduced barriers to employment by reforming the required college credit minimum to enter the Police Academy from 60 credits to 24 credits. The new plan also emphasizes physical fitness by reinstating the previous longstanding requirement of completing a timed 1.5-mile run. Additionally, a recent reassessment conducted by the National College Credit Recommendation Service determined that the completion of the six-month NYPD Police Academy recruit training program is equivalent to 45 college credits, an increase from the previous 36 credits. Graduates of the academy will now enter the NYPD with a minimum of 69 college credits. 

Over 5,000 previously ineligible candidates on 29 active civil services lists were contacted, and over 4,000 within this candidate pool expressed interest in reopening their cases. Of that group, more than 1,300 have already reported to the NYPD’s Candidate Assessment Unit to take the next steps in their hiring process. Following this expanded eligibility, the NYPD has seen daily applications increase by almost 45 percent, from an average of 56 applications per day to 81 applications per day. 

In the past month alone, over 1,172 individuals have already filed to take the next police exam, representing a renewed interest among New Yorkers to serve New York City and become a police officer. Since the announcement of the change of college credits in February 2025, over 9,700 new filers have applied to take the police officer exam. To learn more about how to sign up, interested applicants can visit the NYPD recruitment website. The current filing period ends on May 20, 2025, and the exam will be given beginning on June 17, 2025. 

Because of the Adams administration’s focus on protecting public safety, the first three months of 2025 saw a 10.9 percent reduction in overall index crime, with major reductions in overall crime, as well as shootings, in all five boroughs. Homicides decreased by 34.4 percent and shootings decreased by 23.1 percent compared to the same period the previous year, representing 50 fewer shooting victims. The first quarter of 2025 also had the second lowest number of homicides in the city’s recorded first-quarter history, and, for the first time in seven years, had no murders in the transit system. Additionally, quarter one had the lowest number of shootings for any three-month period in the city’s recorded history.  

Today’s announcement comes during Mayor Adams’ “Budget Week,” where the Adams administration is unveiling signature investments in the “Best Budget Ever,” which will make New York City safer, more affordable, and the best place to raise a family, while maintaining record-high reserves and ensuring a strong fiscal future for the City of New York. Funding announcements already made this week include investments to create more homes, connect more New Yorkers to homes, and keep more New Yorkers in the homes they already have, as well as funding for an ambitious plan to achieve “After School for All.” 

Since taking office, Mayor Adams has invested in safer streets and communities. As part of this work, he has launched a $500 million blueprint to keep communities safe from gun violence, surged police officers into the subways to help reduce crime in the transit system, released plans to crack down on auto thefts and combat retail thefts, hired additional mental health clinicians to support people with untreated severe mental illness and announced plans to pilot new technology in the subways, expanded the Saturday Night Lights youth program to keep young people safe and engaged, and supported a record 100,000 summer job opportunities annually for young people.

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