Top cops asked city alders to support a $4 million increase in the department’s budget, saying rising recruitment numbers call for more money to support an expanded training system and 10 new officer positions. The request came during Tuesday’s Board of Alders Finance Committee meeting at Ci ty Hall, where alders, for the second time this budget season, heard testimony from the public and department heads on Mayor Justin Elicker’s proposed $733.3 million general fund budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. In Elicker’s proposal, the police department would receive $62,666,680 in general funds during the upcoming fiscal year. Last year, the Board of Alders approved $58,589,828 for the department. Of the $4 million increase, $3.6 million is earmarked for salaries. In large part, that money will cover ten new officer positions, said Acting Chief David Zannelli. The plan for those officers is to “reimplement either a walking [beat], bicycle [beat], or crime suppression car, per each district manager,” Zannelli told the alders. “I’ve heard from people in the community, and this seems to be what they want.” Given the recent increase in violent crimes involving children, Zannelli also plans to allocate some staff to middle schools as school resource officers (SROs). According to Zannelli, the department funds 261 officer positions and is requesting the money to cover 271. However, only 235 positions are currently filled. (Those filled positions include 25 current recruits in the police academy, 12 people in field training, and a few officers on leave.) The vacancies reflect the department’s continued recovery from a hiring crisis, caused in part by the lower salaries offered by the city in its previous contract with the police union. After two years of negotiation, the city and union inked a new contract in February 2025 that boosts pay to a level comparable with nearby municipalities. Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Rebecca Bombero clarified on Tuesday that the 10 new officer positions are already funded by the Board of Alders — but at $1 each, which is done when the city believes the positions will not be filled anytime soon. (Including those 10 positions, there are currently 21 officer positions being funded at $1 each.) Given that over 90 people have applied to join the next recruitment class, “We are now in a position to fill those [roles],” she said. While not all of them will become officers, and retirements will offset the increase from new recruits, the department wants enough funded positions to offer all qualified applicants a spot in the police academy, said Bhatgana. “We have to have a funded position to make someone an offer,” Bombero added. In addition to covering new officers, the salary increase is earmarked for promotions, which includes six new lieutenants and sergeants. Zanelli said some of the promoted officers would help expand Internal Affairs to take on audit and inspection functions. The proposed expansion comes after former Police Chief Karl Jacobson allegedly stole $85,500 from the police department and Police Activity League (PAL). On Tuesday, Board Majority Leader Richard Furlow said he is concerned there will not be enough upper-level staff to support the new officers. Zannelli said the department currently funds roles for three assistant chiefs, three captains, 19 lieutenants, and 50 sergeants. Seven of those supervisory positions are currently vacant. “At this point, the best allocation is presented here,” said Chief Administrative Officer Justin McCarthy. Zannelli added that one goal of the staffing increase is to ensure each of the city’s 10 police districts has a dedicated manager, preventing supervisors from serving “double-duty” between districts. Another goal is to reduce overtime. Already, requests for overtime have been declining over the last few years, said Zannelli. In the first quarter of 2024, the department ordered officers to work overtime 459 times, compared to 209 in the first quarter of 2025 and 99 in 2026. In both the current budget, for FY2025-26, and the proposed budget, for FY2026-27, a little over $14 million is allocated to overtime, said Shannon McCue, the city’s budget director. Westville Alder and Finance Committee Chair Adam Marchand questioned why the overtime allocation was flat year-over-year, given the department’s growing staff. Bombero said the budget is modeling a lower number of overtime hours, but due to salary bumps, the overall allocation is staying roughly stable. “It’s going to take us at least a year to know how [the new recruits] will affect staffing,” added Bhagtana. The committee did not make any decisions Tuesday night. They’ll hear more public testimony on the budget later this month. Acting Police Chief David Zannelli: “It’s great to solve a crime. It’s better to prevent one in the first place.” The post Police Pitch $4M Bump For More Cops appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less