Permanent Seattle police hiring incentive program faces final city council vote

(The Center Square) – The Seattle City Council is set to vote on a bill to make its police department hiring incentive program permanent with increases to lateral transfer incentives.

Council Bill 120862 would continue the city’s hiring incentive program that is set to expire at the end of this year. The original hiring incentive program was approved in 2022, when the Seattle City Council authorized using $1.57 million of Seattle Police Department [SPD] salary savings from vacant positions for recruiting and retaining officers through a hiring incentive program.

The new proposal from Seattle City Council Chair Sara Nelson would increase the maximum incentive amount for lateral hires from $30,000 to $50,0000 as part of the proposed permanent hiring incentive program.

If Council Bill 120862 is approved, the $50,000 incentive for lateral hires would put Seattle ahead of the cities of Des Moines, Everett, Mercer Island and Federal Way.

The hiring incentive program would continue to be funded through ongoing reallocation of SPD salary savings. According to a fiscal note, that will continue to total $1.57 million.

SPD is prioritizing lateral hires because they can be deployed more quickly than entry-level applicants. This comes after SPD officers in specialized divisions were moved to patrol in order for the department to better respond to 911 calls.

According to Nelson, 100 officers who were in the specialized investigations unit were moved to patrol in 2022 due to increasing 911 response times. At the time, priority two calls were averaging 54 minutes in response times and priority one calls were around 10 minutes.

SPD is averaging one lateral applicant per day, which is a positive step in the right direction for the department compared to previous years dating back to 2022.

SPD reached a high of 446 applicants last July, the highest since 2013. However, the department is still in a net deficit of officers.

Through the first six months of 2024, SPD hired 21 officers, while 55 separated from the department. Central staff members confirmed the net loss for SPD was still ongoing in September.

The bill passed out of the Seattle Governance, Accountability, and Economic Development Committee by a 5-0 vote on Monday. It is set for a final vote by the full city council on Oct. 8.