Police chief seeks to fill staffing gaps; proposes full‑time animal control and domestic violence coordinator positions

Police Chief Miller told the administration and finance committee that the Salem Police FY2027 budget aims to contain operational costs while addressing staffing and program needs that he says are essential to public safety and victim services. "My budget this year includes provisions for hiring 3 more officers over the course of the year," Miller said, and he outlined three non‑contractual personnel additions: converting a part‑time animal control officer to full time, converting a grant‑funded part‑time civilian criminal justice coordinator into a full‑time domestic‑violence coordinator/advocate, and adding a $1,500 annual stipend for each of three sergeants who serve as internal affairs investigators.

Why it matters: The committee recommended both the Police Department’s personnel ($14,204,513) and expenditures ($1,081,866) budgets to advance, representing the largest department totals reviewed that evening and affecting staffing levels, technology investments and capital improvements such as evidence storage and vehicle replacement.

Miller said operations expenses are roughly level‑funded year over year but personnel costs rose about 3.88% overall due mainly to contractual obligations; the chief cited the addition of hires, longevity/step increases and an educational stipend built into a recent contract. He said the department currently has 91 sworn officers against a city ordinance complement of 95 and that he has one recruit in the academy and plans to hire three officers during the year.

Technology and capital items drew detailed council scrutiny. Miller described two license‑plate‑reader line items (mobile vehicle‑mounted readers and stationary readers), community objections to the vendor Flock and a planned community meeting and audit to review Flock data. He said owning local equipment could allow the city to control its own data but would carry higher upfront costs. Miller also explained a recent court discovery rule change prompted a software upgrade for booking‑room video sharing with the district attorney, and he described a $10,000 line for cell‑phone tracking analysis software used under warrant for exigent or missing‑person cases.

On capital projects, Miller asked for evidence‑room upgrades ($150,000), locker room replacement ($100,000), and other repairs ($200,000); he also described a FEMA grant to expand an automated "drones as first responders" program and discussed the balance between cloud and in‑house data storage for sensitive records. The chief defended the department’s overtime budget as a cost‑effective tool to meet unpredictable demands and special‑event coverage while explaining that some event details are paid by sponsors and some overtime covers spillover impacts elsewhere in the city.

Action and next steps: Councilor King moved to recommend approval of the Police personnel budget ($14,204,513) and the expenditures budget ($1,081,866); both motions were seconded and carried by recorded assent (four hands in favor), bringing the department total to $15,286,379. The committee’s recommendations will be forwarded in the city’s FY2027 budget process.