Police chief outlines FY26 budget, permanent VCIF detective position and equipment priorities

Police Chief Seymour presented the Red Bank Police Department's FY26 budget estimate during the April 22 budget workshop, describing staffing, operations and capital requests and several restricted funds the department manages.

Chief Seymour said the department currently has 28 full-time employees, including 19 uniformed patrol officers, four detectives (including the VCIF-funded detective), and three sworn administrators. He reported that patrol is organized into four teams and that minimum staffing on patrol is three officers, with a typical goal of four.

On personnel costs Chief Seymour reiterated the citywide proposal for a 1.5% cost-of-living adjustment and explained the department is proposing a modest reclassification for an office manager role and a new supplemental-pay category for special assignments (for example, SWAT or other on-call specialty duties). He said a major personnel change in the FY26 estimate is converting the detective position that had been supported by state VCIF grant funding into a permanently funded city position now that the grant expires.

The chief called out operational lines that increased (training, cell service, vehicle repair, travel) while noting a projected overall reduction in the police budget of about $358,000 compared with last year largely because vehicle capital purchases in the prior year (six vehicles) are not repeated in FY26. He said the budget includes an increase in overtime and proposed supplement pay for specialized functions; those details remain to be finalized with human resources.

Chief Seymour described equipment and project priorities including replacement of personal protective equipment and license-plate-reader integration. He confirmed the department will submit costs for bulletproof vests in full in the budget because the city must purchase first to claim a 50% reimbursement grant indicated earlier.

The chief also reviewed two restricted funds: a drug asset-sharing fund (state and federal/confiscation proceeds) and an impound/DOR fund tied to DUI-related seizures. He told the commission that the drug fund's available spendable balance and uncertain federal/state receipts make planning difficult; he proposed a budget that would spend up to about $81,000 on training, canine support and equipment in FY26 but said some of those funds may be contingent on forfeiture awards being finalized in court.

Commissioners asked for clarification on staffing ratios, vehicle replacement cadence and whether the VCIF detective position would continue to operate as it has. Commissioner Larry and Chief Seymour both said current staffing is adequate for the city's current size but acknowledged future growth or redeployment could prompt reconsideration of staffing levels. Chief Seymour closed by noting the department is projected to end the current year under budget overall but that vehicle repairs and turnover created year-to-date variability.