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Texarkana adopts police staffing rules and fees for municipal events
Summary
The board approved a new public facility use policy setting minimum police staffing and hourly rates by rank (regular officers $55.73–$68.97/hr; sergeants $72.03–$74.90/hr; lieutenants $80.66–$83.52/hr) and defining staffing thresholds by crowd size.
Texarkana's Board of Directors adopted a policy establishing minimum police staffing requirements and associated hourly rates for events using municipal facilities.
Police and public facilities staff told the board the policy sets staffing by anticipated crowd size: under 500 people requires one officer; 500–1,000 requires two officers; for crowds larger than 1,000 the policy applies one officer for every 500 people. Hourly rates proposed in the policy range by rank: regular officers $55.73 to $68.97 per hour, sergeants $72.03 to $74.90 per hour, and lieutenants $80.66 to $83.52 per hour.
Staff said applicants must list estimated crowd size on their Public Facility Use application and that the police and fire departments will determine final staffing levels prior to approval. Event organizers may hire private security, but those firms must meet the same staffing levels and be approved by the city; hiring a private security firm does not by itself reduce the city's required officer presence unless the private security meets city requirements and is accepted by police.
The board discussed recent large downtown events (one cited with more than 5,000 attendees, another with an estimated 15,000), how the city would reconcile estimated vs. actual turnout for recurring events, and how approvals would consider previous attendance. The resolution passed by roll-call vote.
