Yakima police propose 10% budget reductions to balance city general fund | Washington

(The Center Square) – The Yakima Police Department is proposing reductions to its staffing levels to help the city avoid a potential budget gap in the near future.

The City of Yakima is requiring all of its departments to identify significant reductions to reach a goal of $7.2 million in savings. The Yakima Police Department is allotted about 44% of the city’s bi-annual budget. Salary and benefits represent 84% of the police department’s bi-annual budget, so cuts to its staff are being proposed.

At the end of the last fiscal year, the Yakima Police Department’s revenues were $2.4 million short to cover expenses. The department said that if inadequate revenues continue over time, it will cause further structural imbalance to the general fund.

The Yakima Police Department is budgeted for 143 sworn police officers, but the actual number of sworn police officers has been near or below 130 since 2019, according to the proposal. 

Yakima police officials are proposing 15 cuts within its department, including 11 sworn positions. This would save the department a total of approximately $2.1 million.

Proposed reductions include a captain position that is currently vacant. It is being held to help fund the department’s deputy chief position. Yakima police officials estimate that removing the captain position would save $187,147 in the budget.

“Studies have shown that the ideal ratio for a team is one leader to four members,” the Yakima Police Department stated in its presentation. “The command structure of [the Yakima Police Department] is outdated and untenable. 

The department also claims its current command structure reduces what the police chief is able to accomplish as the chief is spread too thin to effectively manage a large group.

Yakima Police Chief Matthew Murray touted lowering crime statistics in the city since 2020 during the presentation to the Yakima City Council on May 9. Overall crime in Yakima reduced by nearly 9%, according to Murray. More specifically, there was a 24% reduction in non-fatal shootings in the city over the last three years. Yakima also showed a 17% decrease in aggravated assaults, whereas the Washington state average rose 15% from 2020 to 2021.

“It is unquestionable that reducing the police budget by 10% will have impacts on some of the services the community have come to appreciate,” the presentation concluded. “However, we have been operating well below authorized strength for an extended period and should be able to continue to reduce violent crime and maintain public safety in a similar manner to the way we currently operate.”