DECATUR, Ga. – At today’s DeKalb County Board of Commissioners Committee of the Whole meeting, DeKalb County Public Safety Director Jack Lumpkin announced that staffing levels in police, fire and 911 have increased.
“DeKalb County’s significant investments in recruitment, retention and compensation have helped the county to overcome staffing challenges and relieve critical public safety shortages,” said DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond.
CEO Thurmond’s approved Fiscal Year 2018 budget included $7.9 million to fund 155 sworn police positions, revamp public safety recruitment efforts and enhance hiring processes. The administration’s budget also adopted a more competitive salary structure for DeKalb County employees including public safety staff and provided a 3 percent increase.
“Under the leadership of CEO Michael Thurmond, we are hiring more character based individuals and reducing the attrition rates in our police, 911 and fire rescue departments,” said Lumpkin.
For the first time in five years, the county’s 911 emergency center will be fully staffed with 126 employees in October. Additionally, more than 90 police and fire recruits are scheduled to graduate by February 2019.
On Friday, Sept. 7, the DeKalb County Police Department will host 113th Police graduation class and welcome 14 new officers.
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