Marion police won’t have 5 full-timers
Staff writer
Marion residents could see a new part-time police officer or two on patrol in 2027, but the city won’t go back to having five full-time officers.
It hasn’t had five full-time officers since 2022.
The city will increase its police budget next year, adding $90,000 more for personnel from 2026. This is also an increase of $110,000 from two years ago.
Police Chief Aaron Slater originally requested to budget for five full-time officers, but he and Wells reached a compromise.
“He wanted five, but he’s budgeted for four, plus half of a [full-time equivalent] part-time,” Well said Tuesday. “Up to 1,040 hours, he can employ part-time officers to cover vacations and that kind of thing.”
Wells said the part-time positions could be filled by retired officers or fill-ins from other jurisdictions.
“It’s not like we’ll necessarily have one person to do that, although we could,” he said. “But it could be three, four, however many people [who] are clear to be part-time for us.”
At one point during the budgeting process, the police department requested $594,898 — a nearly $100,000 total increase from 2026 to 2027. It has since gone down from that number.
While the budget is increasing, Wells said, the city is not guaranteed to spend the additional money.
“It’s just available,” he said. “They may not even get a part-time officer or two. We’ve got a couple that have done some work for us, but it’s kind of hit-and-miss.”
Marion City Council will vote Monday to officially propose its budget for 2027. It will then have a public hearing Sept. 8 before casting a final vote.