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Police and fire chiefs outline funding pressures as overtime, training and recruitment bite
Summary
Chiefs from Halifax's police and fire departments told the Finance Committee that overtime, training mandates and equipment needs are putting upward pressure on budgets; police reported $146,980.71 in overtime spending to date and asked for targeted records-staffing funds.
Police and fire department leaders described constrained operating budgets and several growth pressures during the Feb. 17 Halifax Finance Committee meeting.
Police: staffing, FOIA workload and overtime
Police Chief Chavez reviewed the police budget and requested $5,000 to cover overtime tied to a surge in public-records requests, including a higher volume of body-worn camera footage demands. "We have been flooded ... with public records requests," Chief Chavez said, explaining the departmental clerk is spending overtime hours to process requests and evidence-related tasks.
The police department reported overtime spending of $146,980.71 (about 65% of the department's allocation) through the last pay period, the chief said. The department also noted several contractual items on the horizon: sick-vacation buybacks tied to upcoming retirements, and union contract negotiations that could change full-time wage lines.
Animal control costs were discussed separately: Chief Chavez said the town's Precision Wildlife contract cost rose to about $31,200 last year and that the department handled roughly 290 incidents in 2025 (about 113 citations and 22 impounded dogs).
Fire: overtime compounding, training and equipment
Fire Chief (transcribed as Chief WHam) said his department also faces overtime pressure driven by unpredictable FMLA and medical leaves, and described the compounding effect of base-wage step increases on overtime costs.
The fire chief said he budgeted a small part-time paramedic allocation ($9,216) to cover about a dozen shifts through the year. He also added a $6,000 maintenance agreement for power stretchers and power-load systems to ensure the equipment remains state-certified; the department placed full stretcher replacement on a longer-term capital plan because replacement units would be a major capital expense.
What happens next
Committee members asked both chiefs for clearer, written breakdowns of how step increases, degree/certification stipends and overtime interact. The chiefs agreed to supply a more detailed calculation to aid committee review and to show where cuts or contingency funding could be applied if the town pursues reductions.
