Council approves budget adjustments after police report higher overtime driven by Paid Leave Oregon and major cases

Redmond councilors on June 24 approved budget adjustments that cover higher police overtime costs stemming from Paid Leave Oregon (PLO) absences and a series of major investigations.

City Finance staff said police personnel costs were running above budget primarily because overtime increased to cover mandatory minimum staffing after officers were on PLO. Jason (city finance presenter) showed that overtime as a percent of salary rose above historical norms; the city estimated this fiscal year’s overtime at roughly 6.6% of salaries, above prior years.

Chief Devin Lewis explained the operational impact: the department lost the roughly equivalent of two full‑time positions to PLO during the year, requiring more mandatory overtime to meet minimum safety staffing. He also said the department had responded to multiple major violent incidents in 2024‑25, including several homicides and large investigations that demand extended detective and patrol time.

Council approved a resolution (2025‑12) to reallocate funds and use short‑term general fund resources to cover overtime and other year‑end adjustments; staff said they would manage most of the overtime impact within existing budgets by reassigning funds and tracking costs. The mayor and councilors thanked police leadership and asked for continued monitoring of staffing, overtime and recruitment.

Staff noted a planned review of personnel and benefits budgeting and warned Paid Leave Oregon could produce similar impacts across municipal budgets as leave usage continues.