Keizer leaders review police staffing study and task force backs tiered fee to shore up funding

Keizer officials spent a March 7 work session laying out the police department's workload, staffing limits and a proposed funding approach that would shift more of the cost burden onto larger commercial properties.

City Manager Adam Brown and Police Chief Copeland summarized a months‑long study by a public safety task force and staff that found 41 sworn officers on the roster — roughly 38.5 available for city patrol when school‑dedicated officers are accounted for — and repeatedly linked operational strain to staffing shortfalls. Chief Copeland warned that reductions would be visible to residents: "If you reduce our police staffing, the community will see that," he said.

Why it matters: staff showed the department spends a large share of time on traffic and retail calls — Chief Copeland said about 30–31% of workload falls in those categories — and detectives carry heavy caseloads. The presentation cited a 2025 clearance rate of roughly 50% after a 2024 dip, and singled out property crime clearance (residential and commercial burglaries) as an area needing improvement.

What staff proposed: the task force recommended creating a tiered, site‑based fee using the city's existing stormwater equivalent‑service‑unit (ESU) method (impervious surface such as roofs and parking lots) to apportion a police/city‑services charge. Under the model presented, a single‑family dwelling was shown moving from the current $6.90 monthly fee to an illustrative $12.25 under one funding scenario. Commercial tiers would be charged per ESU at stepped rates; staff provided illustrative bills (for example, a very large big‑box footprint could show several thousand dollars per month in the hypothetical examples used in the slide deck).

Task force reasoning: members argued the fee approach provides more flexibility (tiering, discounts or exemptions can be built in, and annual adjustments are possible through the budget process) than a fixed five‑year levy, which locks a single rate and offers less short‑term adaptability. City Manager Brown also presented levy modeling as a comparison and noted a separate illustrative five‑year levy figure in the slide deck.

Public response and council direction: the meeting included a public‑comment period with residents asking practical questions about tax deductibility and urging council action to preserve public safety. One resident asked whether a levy would be tax‑deductible and staff replied that residential fees are not deductible for owner‑occupied homes, while business or rental costs may remain deductible. A neighborhood association speaker and former councilor both voiced support for the tiered‑fee approach and for careful public outreach.

Council members directed staff to return with concrete dollar figures and fiscal scenarios: (a) implementation of the tiered ESU structure immediately at the current $6.90 base so the rate method changes now but the dollar charge is phased, and (b) a second set of figures showing the higher indexed rate that would be needed to close the larger budget gap without drawing down reserves. Staff were also asked to prepare business outreach materials, provide a schedule for implementation that would allow commercial account holders time to prepare, and draft an ordinance to permit advisory (nonbinding) voter input if the council chooses to solicit it in the future.

What didn't happen: the session was a work session only; the council made no ordinance or levy vote. Officials said any formal revenue adoption would be scheduled as a noticed agenda item at a later date so the public may comment.

Looking ahead: staff will return with: refined dollar amounts tied to the tiered structure, projections showing how each option affects the city’s fund balance and reserve policies, and an outreach plan for businesses and community groups. The council emphasized the desire to preserve quality‑of‑life policing while remaining sensitive to affordability and equity questions in any final rate design.