Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz appeared before the New York City Council late last month to deliver a blunt warning: The borough’s top prosecutorial office can no longer sustain its massive caseload while remaining the most underfunded DA’s office in the city.

Testifying during the Fiscal Year 2027 preliminary budget hearing, Katz requested an additional $12.5 million in funding. The request is intended to maintain current operations rather than expand them, bringing her office’s total proposed budget to approximately $120.6 million. By contrast, Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s preliminary budget has proposed a near-flat increase of just $89,000.

“Those who are members from Queens know that historically, we have been underfunded in a lot of the issues,” Katz told the Council. Currently, the Queens District Attorney’s office ranks last among the five boroughs in funding per resident, per arrest, and per court filing. While Manhattan operates with a budget of roughly $180 million and Brooklyn follows at $157 million, Queens remains at the bottom of the list at approximately $108 million.

The funding gap comes as the office manages one of the most demanding workloads in New York. According to the DA’s 2025 “Brave Justice” annual report, Queens processed 60,041 arrests and conducted more than 45,000 arraignments over the past year. Despite these resource constraints, the office reported significant progress in 2025, including a 25% decrease in both shooting incidents and shooting victims across the borough.

Katz emphasized that the requested $12.5 million is vital for three specific divisions: the Human Trafficking Bureau, the Animal Cruelty Prosecution Unit, and the Rehabilitation Programs and Restorative Services Bureau. These units focus on high-impact prosecution and victim support, such as the office’s recent efforts to padlock unlicensed cannabis storefronts and prosecute sophisticated retail theft rings.

The office is also in the midst of a massive technological overhaul to meet state discovery requirements. Katz noted that her office is currently building a new case management system, supported by $9 million in previous funding, with a projected launch in early 2027.

By Shabsie Saphirstein