According to the Houston Chronicle, as many as one in ten HPD officers could retire in 2004.
An internal survey of Houston Police Department officers eligible for retirement in 2004 found that 534 plan to leave that year -- a more than three-fold increase over retirement rates in recent years. This bubble of retirement-age officers follows a sharp increase in hiring during the late 1970s, as police forces around the country responded to concerns over crime and HPD, in particular, was dealing with a series of scandals that threatened public confidence.
HPD officials anticipated climbing retirement rates several years ago and instituted financial incentives to get people to remain on the force longer. But they never envisioned an exodus on this scale.
And while they doubt all those expressing an intention to leave the force actually will do so, they are preparing for an unprecedented demand for new recruits -- and its uncertain consequences...
Officials from both the department and the Houston Police Officers Union are optimistic that when 2004 rolls around, fewer officers will actually retire.
"This survey is an indicator to try to confirm what people are thinking, but we cannot say now what people will actually do," said Assistant Chief M.W. Thaler, who oversees personnel issues. "Even if this happens, they are not all walking out the door on the same day."
HPD officials cite the department's deferred retirement plan, which allows officers to remain on the force while collecting pension benefits, an imminent pay raise and the potential for more benefits under a soon-to-be-negotiated contract as reasons for officers to stay.
Though the record number of retirements is not a certainty, officials acknowledge that if even half of the 534 officers retire, the department will be faced with vacancies well above its annual average...
HPD officials attribute the surge in retirement plans to the convergence of several factors:
· The department has an aging work force. In 2004, more than 2,300 of its 5,400 officers will have served at least 20 years and will be eligible for retirement.
· A deferred retirement program initiated in 1995 allows officers to remain on the force and collect their salary while accruing pension benefits, but it cannot keep them on duty forever.
· Officers will receive a 10 to 13 percent pay raise in January 2004, allowing officers who retire anytime afterward to collect pension benefits based on their higher salary.
Then-mayor Bob Lanier and the police union developed the department's deferred retirement plan, known as DROP, to combat a troubling trend: Officers would leave the department after serving 20 years, then get jobs at other law enforcement agencies while collecting their HPD pensions...
DROP allows retirement-age officers to remain on the police force and draw full salaries while their pension benefits are simultaneously funneled into an account they can access upon their actual retirement. There is no limit in the number of years officers can postpone retirement.
DROP succeeded in stemming retirement rates but, if the survey numbers prove true, it may only have postponed the inevitable...
Officials in Houston hope DROP's financial incentives prevent officers from retiring at the anticipated rate. They are also counting on the prospect of additional benefits in the new contract, which is scheduled to start July 1, 2004, to keep officers on the force.
"There is a lot of merit to waiting to see if there are better incentives under the new contract," said union president Mark Clark. "We anticipate a lot of people taking this path."
HPD has begun to develop a strategy for replacing as many as 534 officers in 2004. The plan calls for stepping up recruitment, graduating additional classes at the police academy and looking at overtime plans to bridge manpower gaps and, as a last resort, hiring new officers before existing ones have retired. Additionally, the department last year began hiring replacements for officers who are using up accumulated vacation and sick time in anticipation of retirement.
But recruitment and training will be critical.
Currently, HPD trains two classes of about 75 officers each year to replace those lost to attrition. If there was a need for more than 500 new officers, Thaler said, the academy could conduct as many as five training class a year.
Some experts, however, say hiring in such large numbers could compromise the quality of the police force.
"If you are stepping up recruiting to train double or triple the number of officers you usually train, you need to make sure you exercise quality control," said Garner of Sam Houston State. "It is certainly not ideal to have that many inexperienced cops on the force."
A strategy HPD officials have used in the past would be to target officers with law enforcement experience at other agencies.
By Roma Khanna
Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle
