National Guard deployment during George Floyd protests cost California nearly $25 million

Deploying the National Guard to Sacramento, Los Angeles and other California cities last week cost the state nearly $25 million, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office told the Legislature on Thursday.

The deployment to Los Angeles cost the state $18 million, while the deployments to other cities cost about $6.5 million total, Finance Director Keely Bosler wrote to lawmakers in a letter requesting permission to transfer funds to cover the costs.

Department of Finance spokesman H.D. Palmer said he didn’t have a breakout of the costs for Sacramento, specifically, where about 500 National Guard troops were deployed last week. City officials requested the troops after about 130 businesses were vandalized and broken into over the weekend in the wake of protests over George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody.

Newsom authorized the largest deployment of National Guard troops associated with the protests to Los Angeles County on May 30 in response to civil unrest there. Of the 8,000 troops activated statewide, 5,500 were sent to Los Angeles County, according to the letter.

This story was originally published June 11, 2020 at 4:34 PM.