The Arizona Sheriff's Association has asked the state for more money to address border-related crimes.
The group requested additional funds in a letter Tuesday that criticizes the “failure” of the Biden administration’s border policies.
Yavapai County Sheriff David Rhodes, who also serves as the association’s president, says this has contributed to an increase in crime in his jurisdiction and across the state, specifically drugs and human trafficking.
State lawmakers already allocated $12 million in this year’s budget for “local border crime.”
But the Sheriff’s Association asked legislators to double that amount in next year’s budget. Rhodes says they would use the funds to increase patrols and canine handlers and dogs as well as to match the “wealth and equipment” used by the cartels.