
By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
St. Joseph voters will decide in November if they're in favor of a half-cent sales tax increase designed to increase St. Joseph police officer pay. This would also go toward new equipment within the department.
J.L. Robertson, co-chair of the Citizens for Our Police, Our City committee, says increasing officer salaries is vital in addressing some of the law enforcement shortages locally.
"In 2021, we had 135 officers," Robertson said. "In 2022, we had 118. Most of that result is coming from not having a competitive starting salary. Our goal is to recruit, retain and compensate these officers for the hard work they do."
The tax is estimated to generate $5.5 million annually, and would have a 20-year sunset clause.
The City Council voted to place the issue on the ballot to pay for the agreement it reached with the Fraternal Order of Police to increase officer pay earlier this year.
The agreement increases the starting salary for a police officer to $49,000. The city also agreed to a three percent annual increase in salaries.
Robertson says St. Joseph needs a strong police department in order to thrive.
"Our community deserves a great police department and a great school district," he said. "We have to have a safe community to have a good school district. It all plays together. If you have a good community, a safe community, a good school district, you have a better business community and a better place to live."
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