Orting police chief says staffing shortfall has left officers frequently working alone; recommends adding five officers

Chief Ruck told the Orting City Council on Jan. 15 that the police department’s staffing has not kept pace with two decades of population growth and recommended the city staff toward 16 full‑time officers to ensure two officers are on duty at all times. The study compared Orting’s staffing ratios to FBI employment data and to similar Washington cities and found Orting well below the per‑capita averages for jurisdictions of comparable size.

The presentation, delivered to the council during a public safety committee item, stressed the workload consequences of low staffing. “When an officer is working alone, that workload, significantly, if not, you know, has doubled or or more because they’re having to do all that work,” Chief Ruck said. He told the council that, even accounting for recent authorized positions, Orting’s officer‑per‑1,000 rate would remain materially below the national average of 2.4 officers per 1,000 residents published by the FBI for reporting year 2019.

Why it matters: Council members were shown that while Orting’s population roughly doubled from 2003 to 2023, the number of sworn officers reported to the FBI has not increased on the same scale. The study used multiple methods — per‑capita comparisons, peer comparisons with other Washington cities, and a workload analysis based on calls for service — and concluded that Orting’s patrol workforce carries higher per‑officer caseloads and more overtime than peers. The chief said officers were handling hundreds more calls per year than earlier and that changes in law, investigative technology, and hospital/transport requirements also have lengthened the time officers spend on each incident.

Details from the study: The presentation cited FBI employment data and Orting’s internal call‑for‑service and case‑report records. The chief said Orting officers handled about 270 calls per officer per year at an earlier point in the series and roughly 670 calls per officer per year in the most recent reporting year when adjusted for positions that do not take calls (detective, SRO, chief). The department has experienced sustained overtime costs, including years with six‑figure overtime totals and a peak of roughly $215,000 in overtime in a single year, the presentation said. The chief told the council that even an authorized complement of 11 officers would leave the city short of a two‑officer minimum on many shifts; “we would have to have around 16,” he said, to provide two on duty consistently and to reduce mandatory overtime and operational risk.

Council response and next steps: Council members expressed concern about officer safety, morale and the budgetary tradeoffs of adding sworn positions. CA Larson and council members discussed the likely cost per fully loaded officer (salary, benefits, vehicle and equipment) in the range discussed at the meeting of roughly $180,000–$200,000 per year. Council directed that the public safety committee and city administration develop financing options and staged hiring approaches for council review; the chief suggested phased hiring (for example, one additional officer per year) as a way to reach the target without a single‑year budget shock.

What the study did not do: The presentation did not bind the council to any hiring plan or revenue source. It also did not produce a formal vote to add positions; instead staff and the public safety committee will return with financing options and a timeline for council consideration.

Ending: Council members and the chief agreed the report shows a sustained mismatch between workload and staffing levels and that the next step is a council discussion of how to fund and phase additional officers. Chief Ruck closed the presentation by stressing the goal of reducing overtime, improving morale and enhancing officer safety if additional positions are approved.