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A Report on the State's Law Enforcement Salary Schedule (Salary Schedule C) for the 2016-2017 Biennium

November 2014

Report Number 15-702

Overall Conclusion

As of February 28, 2014, the State’s law enforcement positions paid according to the State's law enforcement salary schedule (Salary Schedule C) represented approximately 3.1 percent (4,580) of the State's classified workforce (excluding employees of higher education institutions and legislative agencies). The majority of those positions were at the Department of Public Safety; however, the Parks and Wildlife Department, the Alcoholic Beverage Commission, and the Department of Criminal Justice also have law enforcement positions on Salary Schedule C.

The State Auditor's Office compared the State's direct compensation for positions paid according to Salary Schedule C to the direct compensation that the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state provide. Direct compensation includes base pay and various forms of supplemental pay, such as pay for education, certifications, bilingual skills, hazardous duty, longevity, field training officer duty, and shift differential. See Table 1 in Chapter 1 of this report for information on the direct compensation that the seven largest local law enforcement departments provide and that the State provides.

The 83rd Legislature authorized salary increases for the State's law enforcement positions within Salary Schedule C and authorized adjustments to Salary Schedule C. As a result, Salary Schedule C has become more competitive with the direct compensation that the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state provide. For example:

- The State's maximum base pay for positions in salary group C3 (for example, Troopers) is 2.3 percent below the average maximum base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state. That is a significant improvement from fiscal year 2012, when the State's maximum base pay for positions in salary group C3 was 20.6 percent below the average maximum base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state.

- The State's mid-range base pay for positions in salary group C3 (for example, Troopers) is 2.9 percent above the average mid-range base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state. That is a significant improvement from fiscal year 2012, when the State's mid-range base pay for positions in salary group C3 was 9.3 percent below the average mid-range base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state.

Analysis Based on Maximum and Mid-range Base Pay

Although Salary Schedule C has become more competitive, certain adjustments would still be necessary to match the maximum base pay in Salary Schedule C to the average maximum base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state. That is particularly the case for the senior state law enforcement positions in salary groups C5 and C6. Specifically:

- The maximum base pay for positions in salary groups C3 and C4 (for example, Troopers and Sergeants) is 2.3 percent and 1.0 percent, respectively, below the average maximum base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state.

- The maximum base pay for positions in salary groups C5 and C6 (for example, Lieutenants and Captains) is 3.5 percent and 11.7 percent, respectively, below the average maximum base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state.

While the mid-range base pay for positions in salary group C3 (for example, Troopers) is 2.9 percent above the average mid-range base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state, for some positions, adjustments would still be necessary to match the average mid-range base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state. Specifically, the mid-range base pay for positions in salary groups C5 and C6 (for example, Lieutenants and Captains) is 3.1 percent and 4.1 percent, respectively, below the average mid-range base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state.

See Table 2 in Chapter 1 of this report for a detailed comparison of the State's maximum and mid-range base pay for law enforcement positions to the average maximum base pay and average mid-range base pay of the seven largest local law enforcement departments in the state.

This report offers two options for maintaining the competitiveness of Salary Schedule C:

- Option 1: Align Salary Schedule C with the market maximum base pay. Texas Government Code, Section 654.037(b), requires a comparison of Salary Schedule C with the market average maximum base pay. Aligning Salary Schedule C with the market average maximum base pay would have a total implementation cost to four state agencies of approximately $8.52 million in each year of the 2016-2017 biennium. That cost includes the costs to reallocate positions at the Office of the Inspector General within the Department of Criminal Justice (see Chapters 1 and 3 for more information). The Department of Public Safety would incur approximately 74 percent of the total cost of aligning Salary Schedule C with the market average maximum base pay.

- Option 2: Align Salary Schedule C with the market mid-range base pay. Aligning Salary Schedule C with the market average mid-range base pay would have a total implementation cost to four state agencies of approximately $2.24 million in each year of the 2016-2017 biennium. That cost includes the costs to reallocate positions at the Office of the Inspector General within the Department of Criminal Justice (see Chapters 1 and 3 for more information). The Department of Public Safety would incur approximately 73 percent of the total cost of aligning Salary Schedule C with the market average mid-range base pay.

Tables 3 and 4 in Chapter 1 of this report present the proposed salary schedules for the two options discussed above. Table 5 in Chapter 1 of this report presents the annual cost to four state agencies for each option.

Additional Recommendations for the State’s Position Classification Plan

The State Auditor's Office also reviewed the portion of the State's Position Classification Plan related to law enforcement positions and recommends:

- Adding a new job classification for an Investigator position for the Office of the Inspector General within the Department of Criminal Justice. There would be no cost to implement that change.

- Reallocating four existing Investigator job classifications to a higher salary group to allow for salary parity with positions performing similar type work at other state agencies. The State would incur approximately (1) $301,000 in annual costs to implement this change if Salary Schedule C was aligned with the market maximum base pay or (2) $237,000 in annual costs to implement this change if Salary Schedule C was aligned with the market mid-range base pay.

- Deleting one existing Investigator job classification.

- Changing the title of one existing job classification.

Table 9 in Chapter 3 of this report presents information on the recommended changes to the State's Position Classification Plan for the Law Enforcement occupational category.

Contact the SAO about this report.

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