Village of Bolingbrook

The Debate Continues: Can Police Dept Afford Social Workers?

The numbers are showing they can. Visitors weigh-in on the issue.

January 9, 2012

By Rhonda Reed-Slaughter

Over the weekend, blog participants submitted the following questions in response to the article - "BB Police Dept: Where are the Social Workers?"

Anonymous said...

I would like to know how much of the increased budget is just for pay increases. There may not be much left for increased staffing.

James D. said...

Good point, but the increases seem too high. I'm not convinced it's all salary. Didn't the police get new squad cars? Rhonda, is there a quick way to get the detail behind the increases? It would take me hours to flip thru the budget. Thank you.

OUR FINDINGS

The Number Crunchers reviewed the Village of Bolingbrook's 2012 budget, and discovered the following detail behind the $1.4 million budget increase:

Police officer/staff salaries - $724k.
Life/Hosp/Workers Comp./IMRF SS - $362k.
Administrator Salaries - $323k
Personnel Recruitment - $22k

Per 2012 budget, more than 90% of the spending increase is in salaries and fringe benefits. Whether the increases are due to new hires, raises or a combination of the two will require a FOIA request.

The Number Crunchers fully support the salary increases to our patrol officers, as well as the hiring of new officers. According to a source, the police department is short 6 officers. We could use more officers on the street.

However, we do question any new hires or salary increases on the administrator level. As previously reported, we believe the Bolingbrook police department is top heavy with highly-paid administrators. Therefore, the $323k in increased spending is questionable.

We also noticed the department will be spending an additional $22k in personnel recruitment. Why? Lets use that money towards hiring a social worker.

Also note, we could not identify (in the budget) the funding source for the new patrol cars. A formal FOIA request would need to be submitted to get the detail.

SUMMARY

In our opinion, the Village board and police department should consider hiring at least 2 social workers. There's money in the budget to do so. How about drawing from the Administrator Salaries ($323k) or Personnel Recruitment ($25k)?

We have submitted a list of questions to Chief, Kevin McCarthy. Hopefully, he will shed some light on the issues highlighted in this article. We look forward to hearing from him.

If you have more questions, consider contacting Chief McCarthy, Mayor Claar, or the Village board directly. Here's the link to the Village website http://www.bolingbrook.com/.

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Bolingbrook Police Dept: Where Are the Social Workers?

The Village spends more money on patrol services and emergency communications. Will they use any of the money to invest in social workers?

January 4, 2012

By Rhonda Reed-Slaughter

For several years, the Bolingbrook police department struggled with deep budget cuts that led to fewer police officers on the street, a reduction in code enforcement, and ancillary personnel.

However, things appear to be turning around. According to the Village of Bolingbrook's 2012 budget, the Village board approved approx. $1.4 million in additional spending for the Bolingrook police department.*

As reflected in the budget, there were significant increases in the following area:

patrol services ($786k)
investigations ($439k)
emergency communications ($177k)
professional standards ($179k)

CLICK TO VIEW 2011 & 2012 BUDGETED EXPENDITURES

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

As a thriving community, we believe it's important that Bolingbrook invest in a fully staffed police force to adequately patrol our streets, promptly respond to emergency calls, and offer immediate support to crime victims.

The $1.4 million increase in spending may prove to be a move in the right direction, only if the money is spent appropriately.

Here's what we want to know - Will they use any of the money to hire social worker(s)?

Three years ago, the Village board eliminated the 1 social worker position in the police department. An unusual move for a community of our size.

The City of Naperville, Romeoville, and Aurora police departments all have social workers on staff. How can the Village of Bolingbrook, a community of 73,000 have a police department without one social worker?

Do they not see the critical role police social workers play in the lives of crime victims and their families? How their service can help to reduce, and/or prevent future crimes.

Consider Bolingbrook police department's mission statement:

The mission of the Bolingbrook Police Department is to work in partnership with the community to prevent, reduce and deter crime. We are committed to the citizens of Bolingbrook and the men and women of our department to provide professional police service in an ethical, courteous and impartial manner...

QUESTION: How can the police department successfully accomplish their mission without the help of licensed social workers?

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*Note: The fiscal year 2011 financials are currently being audited, and not available for review. We compared the budgeted numbers for fiscal years 2011 & 2012.

Blog Alert! Come Join the Conversation

If you're a concerned resident or a candidate interested in running for Village Mayor, Trustee or Clerk, join us in the debate.

The following comment was submitted to our blog on Saturday, December 31, 2011.

If you're a concerned resident or a candidate interested in running for Mayor, trustee, or Clerk in the April, 2013 election, please take a moment to read the questions and answers.

Feel free to share your comments on the blog.

Anonymous said...

I would like to ask the following questions of this site and anybody else who has a desire to run for Village Trustee or Mayor- What specifically would you cut from the budget? What would you do to raise revenue in Bolingbrook? Would you raise taxes? How do you intend on keeping the current businesses here? What would you do to attract new businesses to Bolingbrook? Please be as detailed as possible?

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