A proposed 8% budget increase for the 2014-2015 fiscal year was reduced to 4.4% at the Police Commission’s second budget meeting Thursday night at police headquarters.
The increase does not include the salaries for the two school resource officers at each middle school, which is budgeted out and paid for by the Board of Education.
Police Chief John Roche said of the increase, “What everyone should know when they see that number is that number reflects an increase in calls from service requests to traffic detail to general complaints from townspeople and takes into account a new radio system that will help protect the future of this town.”
The radio system wouldn’t be the only new piece of technology though.
Chief Roche’s budget also asks for a new “speed trailer” — the machine that clocks driver’s speed on the road, a new, all-digital finger printing system, and a new voice recording system.
“The one we have is a good machine, but it’s new technology that we’re going to need to have to record all our calls in the future,” he said.
He added the new machine identifies all the information the caller says and can verify it within minutes.
The commission seemed to be in favor of the new and improved equipment, but raised concerns over the school resource officers and how they factored into the budget once the school year ends.
The short answer is that the police department will take on that salary for two months when school is let out.
“I don’t think a lot of people realize the true value of that officer,” Chief Roche said, referring to the high school’s officer Fernando Luis. “He spends 180 days of school, which is more than half the year and doesn’t include the weekends, which he is off and rightfully so.
“He has a training week in the summer and is then in school two weeks before the school year starts to make sure the system is sound and everything is ready to go,” he added. “Not to mention, he’s working well into late June and is still entitled to his vacation weeks once school’s finally let out.”
Commissioner Joe Savino said at a Jan. 9 meeting that taxpayers wouldn’t go forward with such a high number, such as 8%, even if there’s a good reason for it.
“We have to prioritize with what we really want in case there isn’t an 8% increase,” he said. “Let’s pick a few things to rally around and get the citizens to rally around.
“I look at this list of new items and see a lot of good, but I know the taxpayers aren’t going to go for it.”
Commissioner Charles Knoche replied the only way to get things done is to propose it and let the discussion begin.
“If we never ask, we’ll never get anything done,” he said.
