Village of Oswego Committee of the Whole Met Feb. 16.
Here is the minutes provided by the committee:
CALL TO ORDER
President Troy Parlier called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m.
ROLL CALL
Board Members Physically Present: President Troy Parlier; Trustees James Marter II, Terry Olson, Pam Parr, Luis Perez, Judy Sollinger and Brian Thomas.
Staff Physically Present: Dan Di Santo, Village Administrator; Christina Burns, Asst. Village Administrator, Tina Touchette, Village Clerk; Jeff Burgner, Police Chief; Brad Delphey, Deputy Chief of Police; Jennifer Hughes, Public Works Director; Rod Zenner, Community Development Director; Scott McMaster, Economic Development Director, Joe Renzetti, IT/GIS Director; Jenette Sturges, Community Engagement Coordinator, Marketing; and Karl Ottosen, Village Attorney.
PUBLIC FORUM
Public Forum was opened at 6:01 p.m.
David Edelman addressed the Board regarding the Oswego Fire Protection District’s upcoming referendum; he is a volunteer of friends for Oswego Fire; service has doubled in the district; community is growing; servicing over 60,000 residents; putting another ambulance on the street; district has not asked for an increase in 18 years; 2,000- 6,000 calls annually; costs have continued to rise; average tax increase for a resident will be $75.00 per year; benefits will be a fourth ambulance, additional equipment, additional personnel and facility grants over $1 million; $700,000 in surplus equipment; if the referendum fails, then the response time decreases, but they will always be there for us; right thing to do; community deserves it; proud of business owners that have put up signs in support of the referendum; hope Board can back up the initiative.
There was no one else who requested to speak. The public forum was closed at 6:06 p.m.
OLD BUSINESS
There was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS
G.1 Police Department Recruitment, Retention and Retirements
D.C. Delphey addressed the Board regarding police recruitment, retention and retirements.
Past Village Growth
• Population & Crime Rate
• Series 3= population
• Series 1= number of officers
• Series 4= number of officers per 1,000 residents
• Series 5= crime rate
Recruitment
• 2019 – Staff hosted an internal strategic planning meeting specific to police department recruitment.
⮚ Promotional video was developed.
⮚ Application process was moved to on-line process.
⮚ Improved communication with candidates throughout the selection process; keep them engaged; command staff meets with the candidates and gives tours.
• Comparing 2018 & 2020 Patrol Officer Testing
⮚ 302 applications received (50% more than 2018).
⮚ 243 participants took our test (49% more than 2018).
⮚ 40% increase of females participating in the process.
⮚ 38% increase in minorities participating in the process.
⮚ Staff, IT and Community Development assisted.
Lateral Transfer Program
• Identified by staff as an additional tool for recruiting and hiring already certified and experienced Police Officers.
• Police Commission is in favor of adopting a lateral transfer program.
• Officers would be hired above the entry level starting salary.
• Salary increase will be offset with no academy costs and 14 weeks salary savings by not attending the academy.
• Lateral transfer testing will be held opposite years of current police applicant testing.
• This will allot testing costs into different budget years.
• Will allow the Police Commission to keep two fresh lists of candidates.
• Lateral candidates will help insulate the department from any lack of police academy enrollment spots.
• COVID caused issues with academy spots.
• Lateral transfers are permitted under State statute.
• Home-rule authority is being used to narrow eligibility requirements.
• Addition of lateral transfer program required changes to the Police Commission Rules and Regulations.
• Section IV was added which sets out the qualifications and process for hiring a certified Officer through the lateral transfer testing process.
• Testing process will be the same as the regular entry list.
• First test is planned to occur early this spring.
2015-2020 Sworn Officer Retention Rate
Retention
• 57% of probationary recruits retained from 2015-2020
⮚ 56% (2014-2019)
⮚ 53% (2012-2017)
⮚ Small improvement
• Department members have assessed the current Field Training Program to ensure it meets the needs of recruits.
⮚ Improvements implemented include 40 Hour in-house training upon completion of academy prior to release to Field Training.
⮚ Introduction base of knowledge.
⮚ Improved communication among Field Training Officers.
⮚ Three officers are up to date on each recruit.
Surrounding Communities Sworn per 1,000 Residents
• A total of 54 Sworn Officers would bring the Oswego Police Department in line with the average of our neighboring communities for Officers per 1,000 residents.
Selection & Training
• Lateral move would cut out 14 weeks at academy and they may not need the full 20 weeks of field training.
Retirement Survey Response Rates
• 55 of 60 Total Responses
⮚ 100% Command (4 of 4)
⮚ 78% Sergeant (7 of 9)
⮚ 97% Patrol (35 of 36)
⮚ 81% Civilian (9 of 11)
⮚ Good turnout.
Five Year Outlook- Survey Results
• 43% of Patrol Officers plan to retire in the next 5 years
• 33% of Sergeants plan to retire in the next 5 years
• 75% of Command plan to retire in the next 5 years
• 40% of Non-Sworn members plan to retire in the next 5 years
• Survey was done late last year; subject to change.
Retirement by Category FY22-FY26 • FY25 is a big number.
Retirement by Fiscal Year FY22-FY26
How Do We Plan for Retirements?
• Continue to focus on recruiting and hiring quality candidates.
• We continue to ask our members when they plan to retire.
⮚ They are interested in sharing this information since they are concerned about staffing levels.
• We can front load hiring to have new officers hired and trained prior to known retirements.
⮚ We are currently doing this and plan to continue in FY22.
• We continue to identify strategies to keep members working longer.
⮚ Enriching professional satisfaction will likely result in a member working more years.
Board and staff discussion focused on dropout rate; staff looks at why a recruit leaves; including a clause for repayment; whether a claw back would have an impact on who applies for a position; recruits are struggling in the program; staff has looked at the program to make sure they succeed; whether Oswego’s requirements are the same as other communities; expectations could differ from one department to another; a lot of places have agreements or a sliding scale if leaving within certain number of years; cost of recruitment fees could be included in an agreement; if graduating from the academy, the license is good throughout the state; retention clause; other departments could have a lateral clause; look at on a case by case basis for a lateral movement; wanting consistent practice; Board approves a lateral movement program for the police commission to move forward with; program would be included in the rules and regulations of the commission; looking at retirement issues; coming up with an internal survey; conducting another survey due to the recent bill that passed; concerns with staffing; challenging to keep up with recruitments and retirements; majority of officers are leaving at 20 years; frontload and try to get ahead; longevity pay; pension issues; need to engage the union; union contract ends April 2022; don’t like to work without a contract; highly trained officers are retiring; would like to keep them longer; testing fee is $25.00; had 300 applicants in June 2020; Chief to email the Board the exact number of applicants over the years; new headquarters is used as a recruitment tool and it has helped; not getting hung up on square miles; other communities and the state are going through the same retirement issues; in the 1990’s, officers were hired through a grant; they are now hitting the 25 to 30 year mark; whether to increase the force by 3 to 4 officers per year; trying to be respectful of other department’s needs; will discuss more during the budget discussion; salary analysis has two officers slated, but the Village was not granted the grant; officers are at the top of the list; last time an officer was hired was in 2010; whether officers are retiring to another field of work; retired officers are working security, going back to a previous skill set or going on to be Chief at another department; need is becoming more real; thank you for the three year heads-up; three years is going to come quick; revenue savings for a lateral move will vary depending on experience; $6,0000 for the academy. There was no further discussion.
CLOSED SESSION
There was no closed session.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 6:42 p.m.
https://www.oswegoil.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=3701
Alerts Sign-up