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Muncie Police Department briefs committee on LIT funding, staffing and rising overtime costs
Summary
The police chief told the finance committee the department is budgeted for 106 officers (target 108), is drawing on public safety LIT funds for vehicle and fuel costs, and expects upward pressure on overtime and equipment contracts such as Axon.
The Muncie Police Department presented its 2026 proposed budget to the finance committee and discussed public safety Local Income Tax (LIT) funding, staffing, equipment contracts and overtime pressures.
The police chief told the committee the department’s LIT allocation estimate for 2026 is approximately $2.156 million (department share cited in committee materials) and that gas, oil, tires and some vehicle maintenance have been budgeted against the public safety LIT fund in recent years. "Unappropriated" LIT fund balances were described as available to draw on for budgeted items.
Staffing and turnover drew detailed discussion. The chief said the department has a budgeted complement of 108 officers and was at 106 at the time of the meeting but that resignations occur rapidly. "We got up to full staff, which for us is a 108. That lasted for about a week. We've had 2 people resign in a week's time," the chief said, describing one move for military family reasons and another as a young hire who left the field. He warned the onboarding and full training process can take 16 to 18 months.
The department also highlighted overtime and contracted equipment costs. The chief said Axon (body-worn cameras and related services) is a large driver of the "other services and charges" line and that overtime can be driven by events and extra deployments. He gave an example: the downtown event Fire Up costs about $10,000 in overtime for a single day. "It costs us about $10,000 for the day in overtime," he said.
Social work positions previously supported by a grant have not been fully funded in the proposed general-fund budget, and the chief said the department has internally transferred funds to maintain social work services for the remainder of the year while seeking sustainable funding. The committee discussed police pension and merit testing costs and was told those are handled administratively outside the department’s line-item budget by the mayor and controller.
Committee members asked for clarification of line items and timing; the department said it would continue to coordinate with administration and the controller’s office as budget preparations continue. No formal votes were taken.
