Council includes police staffing in tentative budget plans
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RONAN – The Ronan City Council tentatively planned to staff its police department with at least five full-time officers at a Monday, Aug. 26 budget hearing.
The department has two full-time officers since former police chief Dan Wadsworth lost his credentials in late July. Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Tribal Police have also assisted in responding to the town’s emergency calls.
“We’re still throwing this up to see what sticks, so let’s do five officers and one part-time,” said councilman Cal Hardy.
Council members debated how certain requirements of a grant used to pay for the staffing could be met. Some members wondered why reserve officers could not be used to fulfill full-time schedules, because other departments across the state do so.
City attorney Jessica Cole-Hodgkinson said trying to argue that point would “burn up every last bit of goodwill” she’s earned with state officials during the past couple of months, although she does try to bring the double standard to the attention of state officials in her conversations with them.
Under the city’s plan to re-staff the police force, longtime reserve officer John Mitchell will attend the Montana State Law Academy. His training is expected to be complete on Dec. 13.
The city has to pay for officers to attend the state academy. Keeping officers on the force after the city has paid for their training has been a problem in the past. Fully-qualified officers can often be poached by larger cities for higher wages. Under the new plan, officers who attend the academy while at Ronan would have sign a contract to stay with the Ronan police force for three years.
In other budgeting business, City Clerk Kaylene Melton asked the council what they wanted her to use as a baseline for this year’s budget.
“Sometimes when you start your new budget based on (what was spent the previous year) for each department, you are penalizing the people who were frugal,” Melton said.
Mayor Kim Aipperspach said the beginning amount budgeted for this year should be the same as was budgeted for last year, and not on what was spent.
Melton said the exact amount the Ronan library will need budgeted was still unknown. The library is relying on the city for some of its funding until December, when first payments from a library taxing district, approved by voters this spring will be distributed.
The council acknowledged Melton’s budget would be a work in progress over the next few weeks.
