There were 72 Manteca Police officers at the start of October.
Then the number dropped to 60 due to layoffs by the time November rolled around.
In 11 days, two retirements will drop the number to 58. By the end of January another two retirements will thin the ranks to 56 officers.
And finally – on March 31 – a fifth retirement will bring the number of sworn officers protecting Manteca down to 55.
None of the five officers retiring will be replaced. The money saved – around $300,000 – will help balance the current fiscal year budget. Those positions are unlikely to be replaced during the next fiscal year either as over $650,000 in personnel savings from leaving those positions vacant has already been calculated in the city’s projection of a working $1 million deficit for 2010-11.
“That’s as low as we’re going to go,” said Police Chief Dave Bricker.
City Manager Steve Pinkerton has assured Bricker that the city will not allow police staffing to drop below 55 officers. If any officer leaves for whatever reason they will be replaced.
Bricker already has a staffing plan in place that maximizes police presence on the street and maintains basic investigative and special units using 55 officers.
If the city can’t bridge the $1 million gap for next fiscal year or else if it grows because the state swipes more money or property and sales taxes deteriorate further, the city would have no choice but to cut personnel in other departments in order to maintain police staffing at 55.
Bricker is hopeful it won’t come down to that as third quarter figures show sales tax increased 7.6 percent in Manteca during the third quarter. A large chunk of the surge is credited with Bass Pro Shops sales. The city splits every dollar of local sales tax collected on sales at Bass Pro Shops and other stores at The Promenade Shops at Orchard Valley with the shopping mall developers for another 33 years with 55 cents going to Poag & McEwen and 45 cents to the city’s general fund.
The sales tax split was done instead of investing city money up front as other cities have done to secure shopping malls including Tracy and Roseville.
Bricker said the city wouldn’t be getting any sales tax at all from what Bass Pro sells if it had located elsewhere as the overwhelming amount of the money spent there is from people in a 100-mile radius. There have been over 2 million visitors at Bass Pro Shops so far this year.
The police chief said Manteca Police’s force is in a much better position than nearby cities because of Bass Pro Shops and the Measure M half cent sales tax.
Manteca doesn’t share the half cent Measure M sales tax collected on every dollar. The state also can’t legally touch it because it is a tax override.
Bricker said that is why he is confident Manteca will be adding officers sooner than surrounding agencies due to the inflow of Measure M sales tax.
“It (the measure M tax) has really made a difference for us,” Bricker said.
Without Measure M, Manteca would have 10 less police officers today by the time retirements are factored in. When April rolls around 20 percent (10 positions) of the sworn officers will be paid for with Measure M sales tax. A year ago, 15 percent of the forces (10 positions) were paid for with Measure M sales tax receipts.
The city has adhered to the binding perimeters established by the voters in 2006 when they passed Measure M. Those perimeters barred substituting the half cent sales tax for general fund expenditures and to maintain the general fund contribution to police services at the same percentage in 2006. The rest of the police budget still represents 45 percent of all general fund expenditures. The problem is the general fund has shrunk by over $7 million in the past year.
Bricker noted that Stockton is reducing its force by 80 officers and Ripon by five officers. Tracy is also planning to reduce more police officers.
“Our guys have really stepped up and put their heads down and are working hard,” Bricker said of officers dealing with reduced manpower due to the economy.
Then the number dropped to 60 due to layoffs by the time November rolled around.
In 11 days, two retirements will drop the number to 58. By the end of January another two retirements will thin the ranks to 56 officers.
And finally – on March 31 – a fifth retirement will bring the number of sworn officers protecting Manteca down to 55.
None of the five officers retiring will be replaced. The money saved – around $300,000 – will help balance the current fiscal year budget. Those positions are unlikely to be replaced during the next fiscal year either as over $650,000 in personnel savings from leaving those positions vacant has already been calculated in the city’s projection of a working $1 million deficit for 2010-11.
“That’s as low as we’re going to go,” said Police Chief Dave Bricker.
City Manager Steve Pinkerton has assured Bricker that the city will not allow police staffing to drop below 55 officers. If any officer leaves for whatever reason they will be replaced.
Bricker already has a staffing plan in place that maximizes police presence on the street and maintains basic investigative and special units using 55 officers.
If the city can’t bridge the $1 million gap for next fiscal year or else if it grows because the state swipes more money or property and sales taxes deteriorate further, the city would have no choice but to cut personnel in other departments in order to maintain police staffing at 55.
Bricker is hopeful it won’t come down to that as third quarter figures show sales tax increased 7.6 percent in Manteca during the third quarter. A large chunk of the surge is credited with Bass Pro Shops sales. The city splits every dollar of local sales tax collected on sales at Bass Pro Shops and other stores at The Promenade Shops at Orchard Valley with the shopping mall developers for another 33 years with 55 cents going to Poag & McEwen and 45 cents to the city’s general fund.
The sales tax split was done instead of investing city money up front as other cities have done to secure shopping malls including Tracy and Roseville.
Bricker said the city wouldn’t be getting any sales tax at all from what Bass Pro sells if it had located elsewhere as the overwhelming amount of the money spent there is from people in a 100-mile radius. There have been over 2 million visitors at Bass Pro Shops so far this year.
The police chief said Manteca Police’s force is in a much better position than nearby cities because of Bass Pro Shops and the Measure M half cent sales tax.
Manteca doesn’t share the half cent Measure M sales tax collected on every dollar. The state also can’t legally touch it because it is a tax override.
Bricker said that is why he is confident Manteca will be adding officers sooner than surrounding agencies due to the inflow of Measure M sales tax.
“It (the measure M tax) has really made a difference for us,” Bricker said.
Without Measure M, Manteca would have 10 less police officers today by the time retirements are factored in. When April rolls around 20 percent (10 positions) of the sworn officers will be paid for with Measure M sales tax. A year ago, 15 percent of the forces (10 positions) were paid for with Measure M sales tax receipts.
The city has adhered to the binding perimeters established by the voters in 2006 when they passed Measure M. Those perimeters barred substituting the half cent sales tax for general fund expenditures and to maintain the general fund contribution to police services at the same percentage in 2006. The rest of the police budget still represents 45 percent of all general fund expenditures. The problem is the general fund has shrunk by over $7 million in the past year.
Bricker noted that Stockton is reducing its force by 80 officers and Ripon by five officers. Tracy is also planning to reduce more police officers.
“Our guys have really stepped up and put their heads down and are working hard,” Bricker said of officers dealing with reduced manpower due to the economy.
