Cleveland Public Safety Committee Meeting - March 11, 2026: Overtime and Equipment
Cleveland Public Safety Committee Meeting - March 11, 2026
This meeting of the Cleveland City Council Public Safety Committee focused on police overtime expenditures and two proposed ordinances for digital forensic equipment and a command bus retrofit. Council members expressed concern over record overtime costs, while the chief and director defended staffing needs and voluntary overtime practices.
Discussion Items
- Police Overtime Analysis: The Chair presented data showing the top 50 overtime earners in the Division of Police, with top officers earning $176,000, $170,000, $157,000, and $156,000 on top of base pay. The Chair noted that despite the switch to 12-hour shifts in 2023, overtime hit an all-time high in 2025. Chief clarified that 2023 had the highest overtime hours, but dollar amounts increased due to pay raises. She stated 12-hour shift officers work 2,184 hours/year (vs. 2,080 for 8-hour shifts) and that overtime is voluntary, not mandated. The Chief noted that many top earners are in units (e.g., airport, homicide, DSU) and that airport overtime is reimbursed by FAA and not from the general fund. The Chair expressed concern that officers working 2,825 extra hours (total 4,905 hours/year) would face burnout.
- Mayor’s Travel Detail: Councilman Casey questioned $256,000 in overtime for police details on 13 mayoral trips (43 days). Chief acknowledged an internal risk assessment process but said a supervisor now oversees each trip. Councilman Casey requested copies of those risk assessments.
- Threats to Elected Officials: Chief confirmed the department is prioritizing intelligence regarding letters threatening local politicians and will keep council apprised.
- Staffing and Fourth District: Councilman Jones pressed for more officers in the Fourth District, the highest crime area. Chief stated that 180 officers are budgeted for hiring in 2026 and that the Fourth District is a priority, with recent academy graduates assigned there.
- Union Contracts: Councilman Jones requested a briefing on union contract provisions affecting overtime. Councilman Slife noted that seniority under collective bargaining impacts overtime pay rates.
- Data Requests: Council members requested breakdowns of overtime by district, rank of top 50 earners, policy manuals, and workload analysis details. The Chair asked for a report on lot two (impound) vehicle volume.
Key Outcomes
- Digital Forensic Equipment (Ordinance 105-26): Approved as amended to include language requiring written notice to the Clerk of Council for cooperative purchases and specifying an estimated amount of $310,000. The funding is $255,000 from general obligation bonds and the remainder from the general fund. This procurement includes three high-end forensic workstations and software previously provided by federal agencies.
- Command Bus Retrofit (Ordinance 1455-25): Approved as amended with similar cooperative purchase notice language and an estimated amount of $320,000. The bus (13 years old, originally $630,000) will be upgraded with new IT systems (computers, satellite dish, Wi-Fi, cameras) and slide-out repairs. The director stated the work will take about 4–6 weeks starting April 15, 2026, and will extend the bus’s life by 8–10 years. A new command bus would cost $1.5 million.
- Next Steps: The committee directed staff to compile requested data for future review.
Meeting Transcript
Order. Okay, thank you. Again, will the public safety committee please come to order? Uh Madam Clerk called a roll. Present. Thank you. Since we do not have a quorum at this time, some of our colleagues are having issue with water on their way down the city hall. So we're going to deal with the overtime issue first. It's a difficult morning of trying to drive on many of our streets. Um does everybody have it? Okay, good. Thank you. And so um, I'm not gonna indicate the officer's name. Uh, but when I look at the top 50, um, I'm looking at an officer that um overtime was 176,000 on top of their base pay. Another one 170,000 on top of base bay. Another one 157,000 on top of base pay, 156,000 on top of base base. So these folks are all making well over 200,000 in compensation. And I'm trying to understand, and I appreciate because we had asked for uh the units that they are assigned to. So um, and I'm assuming you have the same print out. The chair is correct. We all have it. So I'm gonna we're gonna ask some questions on some of these units just for clarification. But I want to but I want to say this as well. We were told that by going to the body was told by going to the 12 hour uh shifts that overtime would be reduced. And um it's just the opposite. Overtime has not been reduced. Now I want to say this to the viewing public. Umtime is a is um the reality within the division of police. Within police fire EMS, you're always gonna have overtime. We know that because when if if officers are on a scene of um of a crime or of a horrific incident, they're not gonna leave. Uh that's their job, they're gonna be there until relieved. Uh same with a firemen, firefighters, they're not gonna leave a working fire. That's just the reality of life, and so there'll be overtime. EMS is not gonna walk away from someone who's injured. Um nature of their job is a safe life. So we know within the Department of Public Safety, there's always going to be overtime. It's that's just the nature of the business, and there's no way to get around it. Um so that being said, when I look at the uh the dollar amount of overtime, um it concerns me greatly because every dollar we spend here, especially general fund dollars, um, it takes away from some other um section within the city of Cleveland, some other delivery of goods and services programs, etc. So, director, would you care to comment? And I would just as you have the list, and again, I'm not gonna ask you to mention any names, we're not gonna talk about any individual names. Um, but if you can start at the top of the list which you have and work down so you can so especially uh the viewing public and the and my colleagues who might not know what some of these units are, would have a better idea as to where these officers are assigned. So let's start at the very top and work down. So we have the airport, um, and we know that that we have officers assigned to the airport by FAA um requirements. So explain what DSU is. That's the next line. That's the uh downtown services unit. Okay, downtown service unit. Then lot two would be what? Just a lot uh impound lot. Vehicles are impound lot too.
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