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Police commission, chief at odds with manager’s cuts; staffing study flagged dispatch and records needs
Summary
A consultant staffing assessment, police commissioners and the police chief said Portsmouth’s department is understaffed in key areas and should not face the reductions the city manager proposed; councilors requested more data on overtime and staffing trends before finalizing the budget.
A recently completed staffing assessment and testimony from the police commission led commissioners and public speakers to press the council on May 28 not to accept cuts to patrol and dispatch proposed in the city manager’s budget.
Kate Coyle, police commission chair, told the council the consultant’s matrix study concluded the department is not overstaffed and identified “dispatch … [as a] critical need.” Coyle urged the council to meet the budget goal previously set for departments (2.9%)…
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