On May 8, 2025, NYPD officers arrested over 75 members of a pro-Hamas demonstrator group that had occupied Columbia University’s Butler Library, restoring access to the campus. The operation, conducted amid heated demands and violent posturing by the protestors, involved mass arrests and the use of a militarized approach to secure the building.

An appeals court ruling on February 11, 2025, ordered the NYPD to disclose all documents related to its $3 billion worth of surveillance contracts, including those for facial recognition technology and other tracking tools. The order came after the department's FOIL denial was criticized, highlighting concerns over transparency and potential abuses of surveillance practices.

NYCLU criticized the FY2023 NYC Budget for allocating over $11 billion to the NYPD – the largest police budget in the country – which funds repressive units such as the Vice Squad and Strategic Response Group. Critics argue this reinforces an authoritarian model of policing that prioritizes militarized enforcement over community services.

An independent audit reveals that the NYPD is failing to comply with the POST Act by withholding detailed information regarding its surveillance technologies. The department’s practices, including grouping various surveillance technologies together without proper disclosure and restricting oversight, undermine democratic accountability and allow potentially biased practices to go unchecked.

On December 15, 2023, New York City Council Committees on Technology and Public Safety held an oversight hearing criticizing the NYPD for its failure to fully comply with the Public Oversight of Surveillance Technology (POST) Act. The hearing highlighted concerns over opaque practices in the categorization and procurement of novel surveillance technologies such as Digidogs, Robocops, and drones, and the lack of new Individual Use Policies (IUPs) required for these technologies. Council members and civil rights advocates stressed that this failure undermines transparency, accountability, and the protection of civil liberties.

As part of a $4 billion labor deal finalized by Mayor Adams, NYPD, along with other municipal departments, secured improved contracts featuring wage increases and enhanced labor protections for its unionized workforce.

The NYPD updated existing, broad surveillance policies instead of issuing separate impact and use policies for each surveillance technology, potentially bypassing required public comment periods under the POST Act. This move, evident in the deployment of new surveillance tools like four-legged robots and GPS tracker projectile launchers, has raised concerns about diminished public oversight and increased risks of authoritarian surveillance practices.

The NYPD reached a labor contract with the Police Benevolent Association under Mayor Adams, resulting in an average 3.2% wage increase over eight years and an anticipated additional $2 billion in expenditures through fiscal year 2027, amidst overall budget cut efforts.

Mayor Adams and the Police Benevolent Association reached a tentative new labor agreement, ending a seven-year period without a formal contract. The agreement, which extends to 2025, includes significant retroactive wage increases and a pilot program for extended shift work, aiming to better support officer work-life balance and reduce overtime expenses.