Losing Troopers: Virginia State Police hit hard by budget cuts

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Hundreds of faces line the halls of the Virginia State Police Academy.  They are the faces of Troopers from the last 75 years but their ranks are dwindling.

“Even when we started 75 years ago we needed 100 more troopers.“, says Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller.

The times have changed drastically and so has the demand.  According to a State Police manpower study, the department needs nearly 600 new troopers now to combat growing threats like terrorism, internet crime and identity theft.

“We’ve had to fulfill those responsibilities by drawing from our core mission which is road safety, highway safety. Taking more and more troopers off the road to fulfill these other specialties.“, says Geller.

The next academy has been postponed twice, for lack of money.  Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corrine Geller can only say they’re hopeful the academy will finally happen in April.

“We are recognizing the fact that we need to hold a class because we cannot reinforce our ranks without having new Trooper classes held.“, says Geller

The department saves $250 thousand each month the classrooms and beds sit empty at the academy.

The 2008-2009 VSP budget was slashed $7.5 million under cuts ordered by Governor Tim Kaine.  The department won’t know how much will be cut from next year’s budget until December.

“To cut further would definitely have an affect on our public safety for Virginians and the services we provide.“, says Geller.

In 2007 and so far in 2008, 213 troopers have retired or left State Police.  Four academies were held in that same time period, graduating 225 new troopers. They got ahead but just barely and are still no where near having the number they want.

“If our vacancies continue to build and we are not able to replenish those vacancies there will some effects the public can expect to see in the long run down the road .“, says Geller.

Fewer Troopers means longer response times.

“Our guys do everything they can to get there because we recognize the safety hazard that exists, but it is a matter of they can only be so many places at one time.“, says Geller.  “Probably the general public does not realize that we do not have 24-7 coverage.“

The General Assembly says Virginia State Police can have more troopers, it’s just not paying for them. The General Assembly has authorized 2,004 Troopers but is only funding 1,896 of those positions.  So that means, there are 108 positions that could be filled if the money was there.

State Police are not hiring and are not promoting within the ranks.  New recruits are getting letters informing them of postponed academy dates but fortunately there have been no layoffs.