Tennessee Department of Safety seeks $44.9 million increase to add troopers, raise pay and cut driver-service wait times
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Summary
The Department of Safety asked the Senate Transportation and Safety Committee to approve roughly $44.9 million in increases to fund step raises, a salary-survey adjustment, 50 new trooper positions, 34 driver-service staff and radio maintenance; the committee voted to send the budget to Finance.
The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security told the Senate Transportation and Safety Committee it needs about $44.9 million in additional funding to address pay and staffing, strengthen communications and reduce customer wait times.
Commissioner Long presented the request with line items that included statutory step raises of $3,297,500, a salary-survey adjustment for commissioned officers of $19,749,500, funding for 50 additional trooper positions at $17,660,000, a $38,000 administrative cleanup and 34 driver-service staff positions at $2,658,800. The department also budgeted $1,500,000 for annual maintenance of the statewide Motorola radio contract. Commissioner Long provided the totals as part of the agency’s FY 2027 request and said staff were available to answer committee questions.
The request drew questions on staffing and implementation. Colonel Matt Perry of the Tennessee Highway Patrol said Shelby County assignments rose from eight in 2009 to roughly 75 today and that the department expects to reach about 100 trooper positions if the budget is approved. Perry credited more troopers on the road with reducing fatal crashes in Shelby County and said the department is running overlapping basic and lateral academies quarterly to speed hires.
Committee members pressed on vacancy and retention figures and asked for follow-up details. Graham Tudor, legislative director with the Department of Safety, told senators much of the apparent budget reversion reflected unspent school resource officer (SRO) grant funding ($75,000 per grant) rather than unrestricted surplus. Assistant Commissioner Russell Schupp said the 34 new driver-service positions will be placed at high-transaction locations — primarily urban centers with some rural exceptions — and that the department's target for average wait time is 26 minutes or less.
Several senators thanked department staff for work tied to the Memphis Safe Task Force and for progress on the statewide Tennessee Advanced Communications Network (TACN). Commissioner Long described a three-year push to add towers and interoperability, saying the network has enabled ambulance crews to communicate on-scene with trauma centers and improved statewide emergency response.
Chairlady Massey moved approval of the department's budget request to be forwarded to the Finance Committee. The committee adopted the motion by roll-call vote and sent the budget to Finance.
The department agreed to provide additional written follow-ups requested by senators, including vacancy lists, hiring timelines for the 50 trooper positions, and clarifications on which localities declined SRO participation.
