The Portland Police Bureau hired 20 Community Police Officers today, representing the first measurable staffing increase in years.
Yesterday, there were 773 sworn members, all ranks. Of those, 517 are officers. With this hire group, PPB is up to 793 sworn members, and 537 officers. Going forward, PPB expects that it will be hiring more than it is losing to attrition.
773 was the lowest number of sworn members since 1989. The lowest number of members at the rank of officer was in May of 2022, when there were 509 out of 609 authorized.
"This is truly a great day for the Portland Police Bureau," said Chief Chuck Lovell. "It's a challenging time right now to work in law enforcement and I'm gratified to see so many people stepping forward to take on that challenge. I'm excited to welcome them into the PPB family."
"Numbers like this, particularly in the field of law enforcement, have been hard to come by recently," said Mayor Ted Wheeler, who is Police Commissioner. "I truly believe that this group, and the growing numbers of people who want to serve the community as police officers, heralds a new and hopeful chapter in our city's future."
Portland City Commissioners Mingus Mapps, Carmen Rubio, and Dan Ryan all attended and spoke at the ceremony.
While these officers are being presented their badge today, it will be some time yet before they are fully trained and working in patrol cars. The training process for a new hire is 18 months, including the Basic Police Academy in Salem, a Portland Advanced Academy, and field training with a coach. Portland currently has 87 officers in the training process.
Also hired today were 3 new Public Safety Support Specialists, who are non-sworn, unarmed members in uniform who serve alongside sworn officers. PPB now has 23 PS3s, out of an authorized 70. More information about PS3s is available here: https://www.portland.gov/police/divisions/ps3s . There were also 5 non-sworn professional staff hired including Records Specialists, a Victim Advocate, and Police Desk Clerk. A desk clerk was promoted to Police Administrative Support Specialist.
The Portland Police Bureau continues hiring both lateral and entry level community police officers. It's an exciting and rewarding career, with excellent benefits. Salary ranges $75k-$107k per year plus pay incentives. Benefits are 95% paid by the city. Visit https://JoinPortlandPolice.com for more information or to contact a recruiter.
For information about careers with the Portland Police Bureau as professional staff and Public Safety Support Specialists, please visit https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/portlandor?department[0]=Portland%20Police%20Bureau&department[1]=Police%20Training%20Division&sort=ClosingDate%7CAscending
Source: Portland Police Bureau