Norton voters to decide fate of department
By Kally Mavromatis
The city of Norton is at a crossroads.
On Nov. 6, voters will be asked to decide the fate of the Norton Police Department.
As a result of a petition drive, a proposed charter amendment — Issue No. 45 — is on the General Election ballot and will ask residents to decide whether or not to abolish the Norton Police Department as of Jan. 1 and to require the city to provide police services through a contract with either the Summit County Sheriff’s Office or other political subdivision other than the city of Norton.
According to Councilman Tom Jones (D-Ward 1), who put forth the initiative, the proposed charter amendment came about as a way to save the city money. In September 2006, Jones met with Capt. Richard Roach of the Summit County Sheriff’s Office to discuss a potential service contract. In December 2006, Jones received a proposal that outlined the services of 14 deputies, three vehicles and 14 radios for a total cost of $1.2 million a year.
At the time, the 2007 Norton Police Department budget, prepared by Norton Finance Director John Moss, was $2.4 million. The Norton Police Department consists of 29 employees, with 16 full-time officers, 13 part-time officers, eight communications/ dispatchers and one secretary.
“After I got this, I couldn’t believe it,” said Jones. “That’s why when I took our number for this year, and this number, it comes out to $1.2 million” in savings.
According to Moss, the actual
budget for the police department
has historically been stable, hovering around $1.9 million.
According to his projections, the budget is on track
for that amount for 2007.
Even at $1.9 million, the city
would realize a savings of approximately $700,000, using
Jones’ figures.
However, whether the city would
actually save money is in question, according to Councilwoman
Brenda Hlas (D-at large). According to her calculations,
the city would still be liable for a variety of expenditures,
including unfunded pension liability and health insurance.
“There may be a savings,
but it may be $50,000 to $100,000,” she said.
According to Moss, these are
costs that would be difficult
to calculate if the police department were abolished.
In addition, many of the costs associated with disbanding
the police force would wipe out any potential savings,
at least in the first year, he said.
According to Police Chief Greg
Carris, these are costs the city can ill afford.
“The city doesn’t
have the money to do that,” he said.
Moss calculates laying off the
department’s 29 employees would cost the city
a minimum of $670,000 upfront, or $900,000 in a worst-case
scenario. This would include paying out for accrued
vacation, sick time and compensatory time. In addition,
he expects health care costs to temporarily rise as
employees take advantage
of health benefit coverage before it expires.
“These are unknown expenses,”
said Moss. “There’s no way to know”
what the final cost would be.
Other one-time costs would include
any worker’s compensation claims and unemployment
benefits payouts, said Moss. It would be difficult to
gauge the number of laid-off employees who would file,
and collect for how long, he pointed out.
Jones, however, believes some
of these costs would be mitigated with the hiring of
former Norton police officers by the Sheriff’s
Office.
“The Sheriff’s [Office]
is going to have to hire 14 deputies,” Jones said.
“And out of the 14 deputies, Capt. Roach indicated
all of them, including
the chief and lieutenant, would be brought in and they’d
have to go through the trial period. Out of our 16 full-timers,
a fair amount of them could be policing our same streets
today.”
Should the measure pass, that
does not mean Norton would automatically contract with
the Sheriff’s Office.
Moss believes Council would begin
by saying, “OK, define the service, who could
potentially do it, talk to them, see if they’re
interested in quoting it, and go through a process to
assess what our options really are and what it would
cost.”
Hlas concurs.
“The way the charter is
written, it’s the Sheriff’s [Office] or
any other entity,” she said. “I would
personally want to get proposals
from the other entities to compare everything. I would
suggest the immediately surrounding areas. I would do
the municipalities that immediately surround us. The
way the charter is written, you have to compare them.”
Jones, however, remains unconvinced
that other departments would be able or willing to take
on the additional coverage.
“I can’t believe
there’s any other city or municipality that would
want to take on the responsibility here at that amount,”
he said.
For Carris, if it’s money
the city is looking to save, then according to him,
the department does everything it can to maximize its
budget. “We try to
save money every way we can,” he said. “My
job is not just to protect the citizens of Norton, but
to protect the police budget. The police department
goes after grants because the money’s out there.”
And as Hlas points out, if it’s
a question of money, then that could be addressed by
Council.
“You could still save money
in the police budget,” she said. “If this
was all about dollars, as Council members we have total
control over the budget; we could just say, ‘Hey
you’re only getting $1.5 million, figure out how
you’re going to spend it.’”
It’s an issue that Norton
citizens will need to examine, said Moss.
“One of the things that’s
kind of hidden in here that’s not immediately
apparent to people is the level of service,” Moss
said. “What do the police really do in the eyes
of the citizens? I’m afraid on some level there
clearly is going to be a difference in the level of
service between the two, and how do you respond to that
difference?”
Ultimately, it’s the voters
who will have to decide which direction to go in.
“I’ve taken a lot
of heat over this issue,” said Jones. “I’m
guilty. I know that. But you know what? I’m only
guilty for bringing it to the people’s vote.”
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