Committee directs law staff to draft civil-service changes to speed police hiring

The committee voted to ask the law department to draft charter language that would give the city greater flexibility — within state law limits — to manage civil-service eligibility lists and speed hiring for public-safety positions.

Sandusky Police Chief Oliver told the committee the department is short-staffed and that closed eligibility lists and long testing windows delay putting qualified candidates on the street. “We have to tell recruits, ‘wait about 45 days because we're going to post an eligibility list,’” Chief Oliver said. He described low current counts on the department’s list, the time and cost of academies, and examples in which only a small number of applicants completed the tests needed to be on the eligibility list.

Committee members and staff discussed how some neighboring jurisdictions follow state law procedures that allow more rapid candidate interviews and lateral hiring. Chief Oliver said he wanted “the same opportunity that every other police department around here has.”

The motion approved by the committee directed the law department to draft an amendment that would provide maximum feasible flexibility for civil service hiring while remaining consistent with applicable Ohio law. That drafted language will be returned to the committee for review.

Discussion vs. decision: committee members discussed recruitment problems (discussion), and then directed staff to draft charter language to address civil-service eligibility and hiring timeframes (direction). The committee recorded a formal vote to send the drafting request to the law department (decision).

Next steps: the law department will produce proposed charter language that clarifies hiring timelines and eligibility-list procedures and that aims to expedite police and other public-safety hires.