Mukilteo council votes 5–2 to convert authorized police “overhire” into a funded officer

Mukilteo City Council on Jan. 20 approved converting an authorized but unfunded police "overhire" position into a funded full‑time officer, a move the chief said will raise commissioned staffing to 30.

Chief Filion told the council he has struggled with staffing for years, pointing to the long training pipeline — "over 1,300 hours of training and evaluation" for a new officer — rising sick‑leave and family‑medical‑leave use, and the department's assignment of a detective to a regional drug task force that removes that officer from patrol availability. Filion said the city began 2026 with about $380,000 in opioid‑settlement funds and expects additional payments over the next five to eight years, and that those funds would subsidize the salary such that the conversion would "have no impact on the budget until at least 2030." (Chief Filion)

Council Vice President Emery moved to authorize the conversion and establish a commissioned staffing level of 30 officers; the motion was seconded by Councilmember Vargo. Supporters said the change would reduce overtime, help prevent burnout and improve response capacity. "This will be a vast improvement, I think staffing wise, morale wise, and efficiency and effectiveness wise for our police department," Emery said.

Councilmember Dixon raised concerns about long‑term cost assumptions, saying the forecasted 3.5% annual growth on a roughly $150,000 salary may be understated and noting a pending collective‑bargaining agreement could change projections. Dixon also cited an anticipated 2029 statutory change that she said would divert 25% of camera revenue and urged delaying final action until council could review June revenue data. She moved to table the item to July 20 to allow review of the promised data; the vote on tabling was taken but the transcript record of the tabling roll call is fragmented. The council ultimately returned to the main motion and approved the conversion 5–2, with Councilmember Champion and Councilmember Dixon recorded as voting no.

The chief said the opioid‑settlement funds currently offset the cost and are projected to continue through the early 2030s; he acknowledged that after 2030 the city will need to identify other funding sources or rely on anticipated salary savings or the public‑safety fund. Filion also reiterated that staffing delays and the long training timeline make it difficult to plan precisely for retirements and vacancies.

The council's approval authorizes the mayor to convert the position and proceed with recruitment to fill the newly funded slot. The council did not vote on any accompanying long‑term funding plan; members who opposed the motion said they wanted updated camera‑revenue and salary‑growth figures before committing to the structural change.