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Council hearing: Police aim to cut overtime to $14M by hiring 180 recruits, but members question realism
Summary
At Cleveland City Council budget hearings, police leaders said a plan to hire 180 recruits and use 12‑hour shifts is intended to reduce overtime to $14 million, but council members pressed for evidence after years of higher overtime and continuing vacancies.
The City Council budget committee on a public-safety hearing heard police and city finance leaders say the Division of Police plans to reduce uniform overtime to $14,000,000 in 2025 by staffing up and keeping 12‑hour shifts, while budgeted headcount remains 1,350.
The goal matters because the department has repeatedly exceeded overtime estimates and council members said transfers to cover overtime have grown in recent years. Police Chief Dorothy Todd and Director of Public Safety Dorna A. Drummond described staffing and pay steps intended to slow overtime growth.
“ We budget the 14,000,000. That is our goal for the year,” Police Chief Dorothy Todd told the committee, adding department efforts include expedited hiring events and changing shift schedules to mitigate overtime. Director Dorna A. Drummond said the administration also has raised pay through the mayor’s RISE initiative and is trying to fill vacancies that drive overtime: “Our plan ... is to have a minimum of 50, at a minimum, of 50 recruit per class.”
Council members pressed leaders for numbers and for written backup. Committee members noted that actual overtime has repeatedly exceeded prior…
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