A Denver police vehicle is parked outside the Lindsey-Flanigan Courthouse in downtown Denver. (Photo by Quentin Young/Colorado Newsline)
Earlier this year, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston announced the city faced a $200 million budget deficit for 2026. To address the deficit, the mayor declared that there would be budget cuts and layoffs to make up for the lack of resources.
On Aug. 18, the first of these actions was felt with the layoff of 169 city workers, with most of the losses coming from the Office of Human Rights, Office of Child Services, and Department of Transportation and Infrastructure. Notably, the Department of Public Safety received zero layoffs despite consuming the vast majority of the city’s budget…