Sheriff briefs council on policing numbers and proposes five-year contract framework

The Swisher meeting heard a comprehensive briefing from the sheriff about local policing metrics and a proposed five-year intergovernmental services contract. The sheriff explained the difference between calls-for-service (CFS) and incident case report (ICR) numbers — CFS counts every dispatched activity while ICRs are assigned when a report or charge is filed — and said, “the total number of ICRs are down by 6. The total number of criminal charges are down by 5.” He characterized overall activity as “roughly the same” while warning growth and construction can drive future increases in demand.

The sheriff recommended adopting a five-year schedule that sets both the hourly rate and contracted weekly hours to help towns and the office plan budgets. He said the towns historically paid roughly 85% of salary and benefits and that, factoring in vehicles, training and fuel, the gap remains; at today’s figures he estimated a deputy’s loaded cost at about $61 per hour and explained a $4-per-hour increase would only move the town’s coverage from roughly 86% to 87% of full cost. Council members asked whether adding dedicated hours (for example to cover Wednesday evenings) would be feasible; the sheriff said overtime or time-and-a-half staffing would likely be necessary and could raise costs and reduce regional coverage. Chair said the contract will be placed on the next agenda in resolution form for tracking.