City Asks Police To Delay Pay Raise; Police Won’t

El Paso City Council has asked the police association to delay pay raises for officers, in an attempt to avoid a tax hike.

The city is currently proposing its 2011 fiscal year budget, which begins Sept. 1. City Manager Joyce Wilson is proposing a 3-cent hike on the property tax rate to pay for the budgetary demands of the police.

That means, for a house valued at $150,000, a homeowner would pay an extra $50 every year. That’s beyond the $950 that homeowner already pays the city – less any exemptions.

According to a contract between the city and the police association that extends until 2014, officers are owed part of their cost-of-living increase in September, then again in April.

Including ‘step’ raises, which raise the pay for officers with certain years in the department, many officers will receive an 8 percent increase next year.

Wilson said that because of the raises, and the need to hire even more officers, the city needs more money. But she added that if the police association agrees to delay the September raises, and gets them all in April instead, the city will most likely not have to institute a tax-hike.

Sgt. Ron Martin, the President of the El Paso Municipal Police Officers’ Association, said his organization has agreed to these concessions in prior years, but is unwilling to do it this year.

“If we do not keep our wages at a certain level, our officers are going to go to border patrol, they’re going to go to Customs, DEA and other area agencies,” he said.

He said continuing to delay raises will drive officers away and leave the borderland vulnerable, “Should you wait four to 5 hours for a unit to get to your house? No. Do you want what’s happening across the border to come over here and you not have the officers to try to control it?”

But Representative Eddie Holguin said the contract with the Association was signed during normal economic times, and now, that times are tough, the city needs compromise from the association. “It’s just unfortunate that we’re not getting any cooperation from the police department… we haven’t given the city employees a raise in two years and they’re not getting one this year, so everyone is having to make these types of sacrifices”, he said.

City Representative Steve Ortega said that it’s better for the association to concede, because the city may consider forcing officers to take unpaid time off. “To include furloughs is a lot worst than the concessions Ms. Wilson is asking you to make”, he told Martin.

Martin said furlough threats are not making the Association change its stance. “Quit spending money on your little pet projects, and put that money into the core departments of the city”, he told ABC-7, referring to the city.

Right now, an officer’s starting pay is $33,116.98. Police officers have received a pay increase between 8.1 percent and 9.2 percent since 2008. But Martin said that not all officers receive that pay, only individuals with the department fewer than 7 years get the full 8 percent, the rest get a smaller raise.

ABC-7 will keep you updated on the proposed budget expenditures.