Police and fire chiefs present public‑safety budgets: police $14.8M, fire $9.2M; departments seek grants and program expansions

Police Chief Derek Elmore and Fire Chief Greg Lloyd presented their departments’ proposed FY2026–27 budgets to the Public Safety Commission on May 26, outlining planned spending increases tied largely to internal service charges and pension and insurance costs.

Police Chief Derek Elmore presented a proposed police budget of $14,800,000, a 12% increase from the prior year. He told commissioners the department’s FTE count would remain at 54 but that much of the increase reflects insurance and other costs that were previously budgeted centrally and are now allocated to departments. Chief Elmore highlighted investigative successes in the detective bureau, ongoing hiring (about 16 interviews were conducted the day of the meeting), and a grant of more than $1,000,000 to upgrade the department’s radio system and 911 dispatch center.

Fire Chief Greg Lloyd presented a $9,200,000 budget — a 17% increase — and said the department is fully staffed with 23 FTEs. He attributed much of the increase to PERS/unfunded actuarial liabilities, salary increases under negotiated MOUs, vehicle replacement planning and interdepartmental service fees. Chief Lloyd highlighted grant funding of over $200,000 for equipment and preparedness (Measure B funding for two power cots, $25,000 for a public alert campaign and a $66,000 monitor cited in the presentation) and said the budget includes a one‑time enhancement for a community risk assessment and standards‑of‑coverage study.

Both chiefs asked the commission for support on outside grant applications. Chief Lloyd said the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) opened May 19 and closes June 22; he expects to ask council on June 8 for authority to apply for a grant to purchase a Type 3 brush truck (approximately 90% grant, with an estimated $75,000 city match and ongoing maintenance costs). Chiefs Elmore and Lloyd asked commissioners to provide timely letters of support when requested.

Commissioners pressed for detail on programmatic priorities: Elmore said the department is hiring a dedicated detective to work with a county mental‑health crisis provider, adding that the liaison role will transition to that dedicated detective; he also said the department is hiring a crime analyst to reestablish weekly crime reporting and support neighborhood watch revitalization. Lloyd discussed community education and outreach, including a sidewalk‑CPR program in partnership with schools and PulsePoint app integration to publicize AED locations and recent calls.

Neither budget was adopted by the commission at this meeting; both departments will bring items requiring council action (for example, grant acceptance or equipment purchases) to the City Council as appropriate. Chiefs asked the commission to consider supporting grant applications with letters and other advocacy.

Next steps: Police staff said an impact study on automatic license‑plate readers is expected within about a month. Fire staff will bring requests for grant application authority (AFG) to the City Council in early June.