2001 BUDGET SHOULD ADDRESS DEPUTY PAY

Cape Girardeau County Sheriff John Jordan may soon find himself in a problem that could have serious consequences: a lack of experienced deputies to handle crime and domestic problems in rural Cape Girardeau County.

The sheriff blames the developing problem on low pay and has sent an "emergency" letter to the Cape Girardeau County Commission asking for more pay for deputies. He fears that by December the county's 13-member patrol division could be reduced by half because deputies will have left for higher-paying jobs.

The sheriff said two new deputies are in training and aren't yet allowed to respond to calls on their own. That could be the situation with any additional new hires to fill slots of deputies who might leave. If that happens, inexperienced officers could be forced to respond to potentially dangerous situations, the most probable of which, since they handle few criminal incidents of an emergency nature, would be domestic disputes that are best handled by experienced officers.

The beginning salary for a Cape Girardeau County deputy ranges from $19,572 to $20,936. The sheriff says the starting pay for a deputy in Cape Girardeau County is lower than that in other first-class counties. In neighboring Scott County, which isn't a first-class county, the starting pay is $23,500. One deputy who left the department went to work for the Cape Girardeau Police Department for $3,000 more a year.

While the sheriff should be concerned about the developing problem, it isn't one that built up overnight. Low pay long has plagued the department and is primarily responsible for a continuing turnover of personnel. The problem should have been dealt with long ago.

The county is currently in the process of developing next year's budget. That process includes setting salaries for all the various county departments.

The proper process for dealing with low pay at the sheriff's department is to submit a pay plan in next year's budget that is competitive. The county commission currently is in the process of developing data on what other counties and other law-enforcement agencies are paying

The sheriff's letter could have told the county commission that a long-term solution is needed without the false urgency of an "emergency." That very likely would mean better pay for sheriff's deputies in future budget years too.