When asked to defend the cost of the billboard, Patrick J. Lynch, president of the police union, said that recruitment campaigns, costing millions of dollars, have failed due to the low wages offered to New York City police officers. The city's contract with the police union expired on July 31 and negotiations have been stalled.
See "Mayor Says Union Billboard Misstates Police Compensation", Thomas J. Lueck, The New York Times, May 2, 2001