State police brief Northwest Hills council on resident-trooper staffing and new data dashboard

Lieutenant Colonel Chris Fonsmee, who commands field operations for the state police, told members of the Northwest Hills Council of Governments that the resident-trooper program remains a priority even as the state works to rebuild staffing levels.

The colonel said the agency will introduce a data scientist and a dashboard to give town officials “at your fingertips” access to real-time measures such as calls for service, proactive policing and car stops, and he invited town officials to the Western District meeting in Bantam on Jan. 20 for a fuller discussion of that rollout. He described the dashboard as a tool to strengthen the relationship between resident troopers and the towns they serve.

Fonsmee acknowledged a staffing shortfall and described efforts to replenish ranks: the department has 38 troopers currently in the statewide field‑training program and a training class of 44 beginning the next day. He said the agency’s full-staff target was in the “1,200” range and later stated a related staffing goal of “12 48,” and committed to providing precise troop-level vacancy numbers at the follow-up meeting.

On recruitment and retention, the colonel said the department is expanding outreach beyond traditional college recruiting to vocational schools, the military and social media. He asked towns to help by promoting local recruiting events and by coordinating with troopers on outreach at community activities.

Members pressed on topics including the possible effect of the police‑accountability bill on applications, housing for new troopers, overtime burdens and returning canine units to resident-trooper towns. Fonsmee said he could not attribute recruitment declines solely to the accountability bill: “I don't have any data to show that,” he said, but he acknowledged applications are lower than in prior years. He also explained that union (NP1) agreements affect whether canines remain assigned when troopers change assignments.

The colonel said he would provide the council with troop- and barracks-level staffing details at the planned in-person meeting for resident-trooper towns and recommended regular attendance by the Western District major on the council’s monthly calls to improve continuity and communication.

The meeting on the twentieth was described as intended for town government officials with resident troopers and was not open to the public.