For years, the Arizona State Troopers and the Department of Public Safety have struggled to protect our state’s highways and motorists while operating with critical shortages of sworn officers and professional staff members. With Gov. Katie Hobbs calling for a hiring freeze and $1.2 billion in budget cuts statewide, the Arizona Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 32 – which represents about 80% of State Troopers – feels compelled to speak out in support of preserving public safety even as state agencies tighten their belts.
How short-staffed is DPS? In a word, very.
Currently, DPS has 952 sworn state troopers working the frontlines in a state with nearly 8 million residents and 8 million registered vehicles. By the FOP’s calculations, adequately protecting a state the size of Arizona would require about 3,000 State Troopers. Obviously, we are far short of that number, but we are also short-staffed in comparison to the state budget, which supports 1,275 full-time trooper positions. Under the hiring freeze, that means the current 323 sworn job openings will remain unfilled for the foreseeable future.
Operating DPS under such staffing shortages impacts agency morale and means that 24-hour coverage of the state’s highways is simply not happening in many areas of Arizona. That makes highway travel more dangerous, and it drives up our emergency response times, especially in rural Arizona. If you have an accident driving at night on Interstate 17 out by Black Canyon City or on Interstate 40 up north, it’s going to take us a very long time to respond to your accident.
DPS also has a shortage of professional staffers. Currently, we employ 677 professionals across the agency – with another 155 vacancies for professionals under this year’s legislative budget. These empty positions slow down important public safety duties like crime scene analysis and forensic investigations. In turn, this creates difficulties for the court system and prosecuting criminal cases.
As the President of Lodge 32, I know that our troopers recognize and respect Arizona’s challenging fiscal landscape. With that said, we humbly urge state leadership to prioritize the preservation of public safety services amidst looming budget cuts and hiring freezes.
We get it: Arizona stands at a crossroads where tough decisions must be made to address our budget shortfalls. Even so, it’s imperative we do not compromise the safety and security of our communities. Law enforcement agencies across the state have been stretched thin for years Meanwhile, the men and women on the frontlines continue to place themselves between citizens and danger, even as we grapple with the complex demands of ensuring public safety in a dynamic and ever-evolving landscape.
As a state trooper since 2017 – and the son of a retired state Trooper and a schoolteacher – I understand the difficult decisions that our legislators and the governor must make in balancing the budget. The responsibility weighs heavily on their shoulders, and we all appreciate the commitment to serving the best interests of our state. However, as a representative of Arizona state troopers dedicated to upholding the rule of law and safeguarding our communities, I respectfully urge our leaders to consider the profound implications cuts to public safety funding would have on our collective well-being.
Public safety is more than a budget line, or numbers on a spreadsheet. It is an investment in the fabric of our society. Ensuring that law enforcement agencies have the resources we need to recruit, train, and retain qualified personnel is paramount to maintaining the safety and security Arizonans rightfully expect and deserve.
All of us at Lodge 32 appeal to our state leaders to exercise prudent judgment and foresight as they navigate Arizona’s budgetary challenges. While difficult decisions undoubtedly lie ahead, we hope they will prioritize public safety and spare law enforcement agencies from any additional undue burden.
Law enforcement was never meant to be an easy job. But public safety without the appropriate manpower and resources is simply impossible.
John Simon is the President of the Arizona Department of Public Safety Fraternal Order of Police – Lodge 32.
