SAN JOSE (KCBS) – Deep cuts to the San Jose Police Department budget are forcing the cash-strapped agency to make major changes to its response policy.

As a result of police officer layoffs, anonymous noise complaints, burglar alarms and non-injury car crashes will now fall under the category of ‘non-response.’

San Jose Police spokesman Jose Garcia said the department wants to get the word out as soon as possible so residents know exactly what service reductions to expect.

“To avoid frustration on the community’s part, we’d just rather say look, these are the type of calls we will not be responding to because of the staffing levels,” said Garcia

KCBS’ Matt Bigler:

Garcia said the police department also will transfer some emergency calls to other city departments.

“If the responsibility falls under a different department, and it’s not a danger or hazard to the community, we may just refer them back to that appropriate department to handle and investigate,” he said.

Last month, the city of San Jose laid off 66 police officers as a result of a multi-million dollar budget deficit.

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