FSPD: Pay raise, training improving police officer tenure

An almost 24% pay raise for officers on the force has positively impacted the Fort Smith Police Department by enhancing officers’ job satisfaction and financial well-being with an increase, according to department officials.

Aric Mitchell, FSPD public information officer, said as of Dec. 21 the department has two uniformed officer openings out of 164 sworn officer positions available as compared to the lowest point during the last few years, it had close to 40 openings.

“Being able to compete with other areas on pay was a game-changer, particularly when you look at the incredible cost-of-living advantage that Fort Smith has to offer, and we are grateful to everyone who made that happen,” Mitchell said.

When the city of Fort Smith asked voters to pass a 0.75% sales tax in 2022 to fund federal consent decree work on the city’s sewer system and add additional funding to the department, Baker proposed to use revenue from the sales tax to boost all salaries by 23.87% and add five officers a year beginning in 2028 if the sales tax was approved.

Almost 57% of city residents in an election in May 2022 approved the 0.75% sales tax extension that gives 83.3% of the tax revenue supporting federally mandated sewer system improvements, with the remainder directed to the FSPD.

The police department’s 5-year capital improvement plan, approved by the Fort Smith Board of Directors in early December, estimates the FSPD 23.87% pay raise to cost the department $2.652 million for 163 sworn personnel in 2024. A new step schedule, which was approved in January and took effect July 10, takes Step 1 for uniformed officers and corporals from $19.41 an hour to $24.04, which is $50,000 a year. Steps are included for sergeants, lieutenants, captains and deputy chiefs. The highest rank listed on the 2023 salary schedule included in the ordinance is deputy chief, Step 3 with an annual salary of approximately $112,551.

Though he did not have the average tenure of officers currently on the force, Mitchell said, anecdotal, it is going up.

“It also helps that we have some of the best training, a strong sense of community within the department, buy-in from the officers on community policing initiatives, and, most important of all, the support of our residents and businesses,” Mitchell said. “Fort Smith is not immune to national issues, but we’ve managed to steer clear of the problems you see in other cities thanks to this ‘in-it-together’ mindset.”

To further recruit and retain experienced officers, the department will continue to invest in those areas, he said.

“We also actively seek feedback from our officers and residents to address any issues as they arise,” Mitchell said.

The department recently was the first police agency in the state to institute the My90 program from AXON. This allows anyone who comes into contact with one of our officers to tell the department how it’s doing, Mitchell said.

“It also gives officers a chance to let us know what their experience is like working in the department,” he said.

This program allows the department to get a sense of how officers are enjoying their work by watching what the public is saying about their interactions. On Dec. 4, the department pulled numbers from My90 and found it had 253 responses. When looking at the approval ratings of those interactions, the number one thought that was conveyed was “fairness,” Mitchell said.

“Even if it was an enforcement action, an overwhelming majority of our citizens felt they’d been treated fairly with an 83 percent positive view of the agency and 88 percent saying they were treated with respect,” Mitchell said.