Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Surprise approves $7 million public-safety amendment to cover overtime and training for police and fire
Summary
City Council approved a $7 million midyear budget amendment to cover police and fire overtime, training and supplies; chiefs warned of attrition and training backlogs and council stressed need to budget for sustained manpower increases.
The Surprise City Council on April 7 approved a fiscal-year 2026 budget amendment totaling $7 million to cover increased operational expenses for police and fire personnel and supplies.
What passed: Council approved resolution 2026‑49 after chiefs from police and fire described workforce attrition and training needs. The police request included $2.35 million for overtime and $750,000 for supplies and equipment; the fire department requested $3.9 million in overtime to support staffing and advanced training for paramedics and specialty response teams.
Why it matters: City officials said Surprise is growing rapidly and emergency services face higher call volumes and workforce turnover. Fire staff told council the city had hired an unusually large paramedic class (more than 20 paramedic trainees) and that paramedic training is lengthy (about 1,400 hours, roughly a year) and costly to the department. Council members agreed that short‑term overtime is necessary to maintain service levels, while urging managers to incorporate these costs into future operating budgets so the overtime and emergency staffing need not recur mid‑year.
Council discussion: Councilman Judd and others pressed for improved long‑term budgeting and planning so overtime does not become the default staffing model; city finance staff said the overtime request is within acceptable levels for a growing department and characterized most of the funding as one‑time or transitional. The measure passed on a roll‑call vote.
Implementation: Staff said recruits are in training and additional academy classes are scheduled; the police and fire departments will use the amendment for overtime to maintain coverage while new hires complete training, and for training costs to increase in‑house paramedic and specialty capabilities.
Provenance: The public-safety presentation and Q&A span SEG 2611–3133, including detailed staffing and cost figures presented by police and fire leadership and finance staff.
