Port Angeles – The Port Angeles Police Department is getting a $785,000 state grant to hire 4 new officers. The grant will pay 75% of the salary and benefits for four entry level Officers and it requires a 25% City match of around $262,000 to cover the rest.
The City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved accepting the grant, but it only pays the salaries for the new officers for up to 2 years. After that, thanks to the recently-passed House Bill 2015 in the state legislature, the city is authorized to implement a new 0.1% local sales tax specifically to fund “criminal justice purposes”.
To receive the funds, PAPD had to meet specific policy, training and data reporting standards. The department was notified on April 13 that they had qualified for the grant.
Along with the vote to accept the grant, the city council directed city staff to create the necessary documents and set a public hearing to consider a 0.01% criminal justice sales tax. If such a tax isn’t in place at the end of the 2 year grant cycle, the funds to pay the new officers will likely have to come from another source, such as pulling money from other services, or risk cutting personnel.