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Councilors press APD on staffing, command structure and pending end of DOJ oversight
Summary
City Councilors questioned Albuquerque Police Department leadership about staffing levels, an increase in command-level positions, vacancy-driven program savings and the department’s status in the Justice Department settlement during the May 1 budget hearing.
Albuquerque — Albuquerque Police Department leaders told the City Council on May 1 that their department is funded for 1,000 sworn officers and that the chief expects to approach that level later in the year, but councilors pressed for detail on how vacancy savings and a shift in command staffing affect frontline patrol and response.
Chief Harold Medina and APD staff told the committee the department currently has roughly 900 sworn staff in the field and said about 462 marked units (police cars) were available to respond to calls for service. The chief described ongoing recruitment and academy classes, and said 37 officers were scheduled to start the next week with another 30 in the pipeline.
Councilors focused on three subjects:
Command staffing and span of control: Councilors reviewed an APD organizational snapshot that showed dozens of positions above the rank of lieutenant (deputy chiefs, majors, commanders and other senior roles). Several councilors said the department appeared “top heavy” and asked whether salaries and senior ranks could be rebalanced to fund more frontline positions. Chief Medina defended leadership increases as part of reforms required by the city’s consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and said additional supervisors were needed to ensure appropriate oversight, faster case reviews and compliance.
Vacancy savings and “program savings”: Councilors noted the FY26 proposed budget reflects a program-savings line of about $5.4 million in personnel for APD. Budget staff confirmed the amount represents modeled vacancy savings—dollars not expected to be spent during the year because positions will go unfilled—and said the administration used the same modeling approach citywide. Councilors asked whether the practice reduces transparency about actual funding for frontline positions and requested more explicit presentation of the personnel picture.
DOJ monitoring and complaint trends: Councilors asked the Civilian Police Oversight Agency and APD about complaint volume and investigative capacity. APD’s civilian oversight partner said complaint intakes had increased and assigned investigations numbered roughly 90 so far in the year; the Civilian Police Oversight Agency said it now has eight filled investigators and has budgeted for more. Chief Medina said DOJ’s monitor has moved to close out documents and that the department was in discussions about next steps; councilors pressed for a clear timeline and asked for written staffing requests tied to backlog reduction and compliance.
What happens next: Councilors asked for a clearer list of command-level positions, the number of investigators needed to reduce investigative backlogs, and a searchable account of the vacancy-savings assumptions driving personnel lines. APD and Civilian Police Oversight Agency staff agreed to provide details and staffing projections to inform council review before final adoption.
Ending: The council deferred budget adoption to May 8 for further work; APD pledged more detailed headcount and vacancy data to help the council evaluate staffing tradeoffs.
