Columbus Police officials outline retention problem and high cost of replacing trained officers

Deputy Chief Roderick Graham and members of Columbus Police Department leadership briefed council members on May 13 about recruitment, retention and the financial impact of turnover.

Graham described a talent-management initiative and detailed the department’s staffing: the department reported roughly a 3–3.5% vacancy rate for sworn officer slots but 12–13 openings at the officer rank. He told the council that hiring and training a new officer can cost roughly $94,000 in the first year, and that the City’s investment in a five‑year officer who then leaves can total approximately $363,000 (for an officer with no college degree) or higher for officers with associate or bachelor degrees. Graham said those replacement costs scale quickly when multiple vacancies must be filled.

Columbus Police Chief and Deputy Chief also presented retention ideas discussed in other jurisdictions: changing pension contribution sharing; modifying DROP (deferred retirement option plan) structure to avoid unpredictable extensions; earlier and continuous supervisory training; mentoring and a defined succession plan; and targeted career-path development to keep officers in the department. The deputy chief argued the current pattern of losing officers after 3–5 years largely reflects other agencies recruiting trained, certified officers to avoid their own training costs.

Councilors asked about legal and administrative levers to improve retention. Councilor Chambers asked the share of turnover due to retirement (the chiefs said retirements were a small portion, roughly 1–2%). Councilor Tucker asked whether the city requires officers who leave before a given term to reimburse training costs; staff said Georgia policy provides a modest recoupment (about $2,400) that does not cover the full training investment. Council members discussed whether pension board or actuary review could recommend changes to DROP timing; the city attorney and pension board process were cited as necessary next steps.

Why it matters: The Police Department argued that retention improvements represent a clear return on investment — training costs to replace experienced staff are substantial and recurring — and that reform could reduce long-term personnel expense and preserve institutional knowledge.

Next steps: Councilors discussed sending the DROP/pension questions to the pension board and having the plan’s actuary evaluate the cost impact of changes. Police leadership said recruitment and retention proposals would be part of FY2026 planning.

Quotes

"When the cost that it costs to train individuals in 2025 and '26 and '27, it will cost more to replace those individuals that leave," Deputy Chief Roderick Graham said. "We are basically training, we are basically recruiting individuals into law enforcement, training them for other agencies to a to a certain degree."

Provenance

(Topic introduced) Transcript segment starting at 3286.68: "Very good. Alright. Next, we've got a, a brief presentation by, Deputy Chief Roderick Graham from the Police Department. It's a police retention update." (topicintro)

(Topic finish) Transcript segment starting at 5614.985: "Thanks. Thank you, for the presentation. And I I brought this up, I think, around this time last year and... the 1 71 rule where it's the pay reform." (topicfinish)