Iowa town contemplates closing police department amid overtime concerns
In response to concerns about overtime employee attendance compensation rates, the town of Northwood, Iowa, is considering eliminating its police force, the Mason City Globe Gazette reports.
The Northwood Police Department currently consists of three positions, one of which is unfilled. Department figures indicate that it spent more than $13,000 between July and September to compensate additional time and attendance.
By dropping the department and contracting law enforcement services from the Worth County Sheriff’s Department, the town could save up to $130,000 in the first 12 months, according to an estimate by Worth County Sheriff Jay Langenbau. The NPD's current employees would be hired as deputies at a lower rate of pay, the news source reports.
Overtime has recently become a problem on a much larger scale for police departments in major U.S. municipalities because of the spread of Occupy Wall Street. During the first month of the protests, the New York Police Department accrued approximately $2 million in overtime, according to NYPD commissioner Raymond Kelly.
The Northwood Police Department currently consists of three positions, one of which is unfilled. Department figures indicate that it spent more than $13,000 between July and September to compensate additional time and attendance.
By dropping the department and contracting law enforcement services from the Worth County Sheriff’s Department, the town could save up to $130,000 in the first 12 months, according to an estimate by Worth County Sheriff Jay Langenbau. The NPD's current employees would be hired as deputies at a lower rate of pay, the news source reports.
Overtime has recently become a problem on a much larger scale for police departments in major U.S. municipalities because of the spread of Occupy Wall Street. During the first month of the protests, the New York Police Department accrued approximately $2 million in overtime, according to NYPD commissioner Raymond Kelly.
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