The New Orleans Police Department and the city of New Orleans did a poor job budgeting for and monitoring police overtime last year, according to a report the city's Office Inspector General released Thursday.
Reviewing records between January 1 and July 31, 2025, the OIG found NOPD officers logged more than 260,000 hours of overtime during those seven months, at a cost of more than $16.4 million to the city.
While the report notes that most of that was legit, for things like the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras, it says that the poor oversight created opportunities for abuse.
"The NOPD did not adhere to the CAO (Chief Administrative Officer) policy for overtime expenditures and lacked a sufficient, consistent system for oversight of overtime usage," the inspector general's office said. "This lack of proper oversight resulted in an increased risk of payroll fraud as well as other forms of fraud, waste, and abuse."
Auditors also found that the NOPD lacks a clear and consistent process for allotting overtime.
"Ensuring public safety is one of the most important functions of City government and requires significant resources. However, these resources must be used responsibly and efficiently and for their intended purposes," said Inspector General Ed Michel. "It is critical that the NOPD and the City properly manage its overtime usage, including uniform methods of oversight and verification of overtime throughout the Department. Otherwise, future overtime budget planning and accountability will be ineffective."