Chief Klinger told the Board of Aldermen that eliminating or leaving vacant the assistant chief position would leave the department without an administrative officer between the chief and patrol sergeants and "it is gonna hamper the operation" of the police department.

During budget deliberations Alderman Cleave proposed removing the assistant chief hours from the payroll worksheet to reduce immediate budget pressure. Chief Klinger said the department had operated without that position for over a year and that the absence had left administrative work undone: "there's a certain legitimacy that what you're not seeing is all the work that that hasn't been getting done," he said.

Attorney Jones explained that Proposition P (Prop P) funding for the city’s police allocation is based on a reported officer count at passage and that reducing the official headcount below the threshold could affect funds; Jones said the city currently collects money based on the higher historical count and that, "as long as we don't go below that 18 number, it shouldn't affect anything." The chief asked Jones to confirm whether any annual reporting rules would change that calculation.

To balance operational needs and budget constraints, the board agreed to keep the assistant chief position in the budget but reduce budgeted hours and tentatively set a September 1 start date for the hire. Alderman discussion noted that bringing the position in on Sept. 1 (1,734 hours) instead of July 1 would lower FY2026 costs by roughly $20,000, giving additional time to assess revenues and contingency levels.

Ending: Chief Klinger said he can delay hiring to accommodate the board's budget concerns but warned that administrative backlogs would continue until the department has an additional administrator; staff will reflect the 17 34 hours on the payroll worksheet and keep the board advised on any Prop P reporting implications.