Council committee hears progress report on police recruitment as city seeks to rebuild ranks

Pittsburgh public safety officials told a City Council standing committee on July 9 that recruitment for the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police has improved since the low point during the COVID era but that the department still faces capacity and retention constraints.

The briefing, delivered to the Public Safety and Wellness Committee, outlined current applicant counts and staffing steps: a cohort of about 165 applicants is in the testing phase now, the department’s academy typically accepts up to 40 recruits per class, and the city hopes to run three academy classes a year to produce roughly 120 new officers annually if the classes fill. The department also described a new recruitment video, two full-time recruitment officers and a near-final lateral-hire policy to bring experienced officers into the bureau at pay rates adjusted for prior experience.

Committee chair Councilman Coghill convened the discussion and called up Public Safety leadership. Anthony Palermo, identified as a commander and chief of staff for the bureau, said the department has two full-time recruitment officers and that the current testing group includes about 165 people. "We have 2 recruitment officers full time. That's what they do full time," Palermo said. He described an active outreach strategy that includes in-person engagement at community locations and colleges, and a plan to share draft recruitment materials with council before public release.

Palermo and other department leaders described where candidates typically fall out of the process and what the city is doing to keep more people moving through testing and into training. The department said the current testing cohort is undergoing physical fitness testing this week, and that an academy class is scheduled for November. "If we can get those filled, you know, that would give us 120 officers new per year, which would outpace retirements and departures," a department official said.

Committee members pressed for detail about what can be done to increase class size, speed hiring and reduce losses to other jurisdictions. Members were told that space at the training academy and instructor availability are the practical limits on class size; the department estimated it could possibly stretch one class to 45 recruits but said very large applicant pools would be split into separate classes. The department also said it is finalizing a lateral-transfer policy so officers with prior experience can be hired at a higher starting pay rate commensurate with their years of service, while still attending local training to learn bureau procedures.

Members asked about retention and the cost of training. Department officials said turnover has been higher in the last two years than historically (they described departures near or above 100 annually in recent years, versus roughly 70 pre‑COVID), and that Monicipal Police Officer Education & Training Commission (MOPEC) reimbursement for academy costs—previously paid to municipalities—has recently been suspended and may be restored; department staff said MOPEC reimbursement previously covered roughly 40 percent of training costs (approximate figure provided in committee remarks). If the reimbursement remains suspended, the department said the city would have to consider options to recoup training costs or change hiring practices.

Officials also described process steps and timing. The department said the civil service exam is the first formal step; candidates who make the testing list next face physical fitness tests and then background investigation materials. Committee members and department staff clarified procedural limits around background checks: HR and legal practice limit certain pre-offer checks, and background investigations generally proceed after successful completion of the prescribed testing steps and tentative hiring offer.

Council members thanked recruiters for their outreach work and asked the department to continue sharing recruitment materials with council before release. Several members asked the department to provide additional numerical breakdowns (for example, the number of applicants in earlier low points during COVID and the exact monthly application figures) so council can track progress.

The committee took an unrelated vote during the same segment: it recommended approval of a professional services amendment for recruitment/retention consulting (Bill 19-86). That resolution was advanced with an affirmative recommendation.

The department and council members said they would continue to monitor application conversion rates, class fill rates and any changes in MOPEC funding or reimbursement rules, and to coordinate recruitment and retention measures with Human Resources and the training academy.