Police chief says pay compression is undermining lieutenants; committee backs request for fourth police admin position pending finance review

Police Chief Hostens told the Wisconsin Rapids Human Resources Committee that salary compression in the police department — in some cases leaving sergeants making more than lieutenants — is a “public safety capacity” problem that is discouraging promotions and threatening operational leadership.

“It’s not simply a compensation discussion. This is a public safety capacity issue,” the chief said, arguing that when base pay for supervisory and command ranks converges, the department loses incentives for sergeants to accept promotion and the city risks losing experienced lieutenants.

The chief cited both 2025 and 2026 supplemental county and municipal aid under the 2023 Act 12 as potential funding sources and said the city received $924,391.34 in 2025 and is estimated to receive $955,824.56 in 2026. He proposed using a reserve draw for the remainder of 2026 (estimated at about $74,033.76) and applying a portion of Act 12 funds in 2027, saying the combined corrective measures would be a fraction of the supplemental aid the city expects to receive.

Night shift Lieutenant Joe Foy described the everyday impact on supervision and training, saying lieutenants can end up earning “several dollars an hour, significant amount of money less than every one of those people that I am there supervising,” which reduces willingness to take on the higher-responsibility role. Another lieutenant added that sergeants often receive overtime and paid meeting compensation while lieutenants are sometimes forced to take flex time instead of pay, widening the gap.

Human resources staff (Ryan) said the city’s wage schedule is in its third year and recommended addressing lieutenant pay as part of the 2026 budget process for implementation in 2027 to avoid ad hoc one-off adjustments. The chief said the situation is urgent and that waiting until the regular budget cycle risks further erosion of leadership capacity.

Committee members asked for additional detail on where Act 12 funds have been applied in prior years; HR staff said allocation and accounting questions are finance matters and recommended routing the proposal through the Finance & Property Committee for a full budget review. The committee moved to approve restoring a fourth police administrative assistant position — to bring the records team back to its 2025 staffing level — contingent on the Finance & Property Committee locating funds to support the role. The motion passed, 3-0.

The committee’s recommendation will go to the Finance & Property Committee for a decision on funding and any budget adjustments. Chief Hostens and HR staff said they are available to provide the packet and answer detailed questions about the cost estimates and implementation schedule.