Fiscal Year 2024 Budget

Police Chief Ricciardelli says he has tried to level fund the cost of public safety for Saugus

  Police Chief Michael Ricciardelli requested a $9.2 million budget for the 2024 Fiscal Year that begins July 1 – about a $159,000 increase over the current year. “We try to level fund most things,” Chief Ricciardelli said in a recent budget review session with the Finance Committee.

  The biggest hike was $130,000 for the salaries and wages of full-time department personnel, which includes the chief, nine lieutenants, nine sergeants, 51 patrolmen, one administrative assistant, one principal clerk, one general assistant and one mechanic.

  He noted in his budget request that the contracts for the Superior Officers’ Association and the Saugus Police Patrolmen’s Association will expire on June 30, at the end of the fiscal year, which accounted for the additional funding request.

  “The Police Department continues to operate with less than our full complement of officers,” the chief noted. “As a result, the department uses overtime to fill vacancies that are created by officers taking contractual time off. Due to the staffing issues anytime one officer is absent, the department must fill the shift with overtime. The Police Department has had long-term officer injuries, family medical leave, military drills/deployments and vacancies due to retirements, which have added to the ongoing staffing issue,” he said.

  The overtime budget remains at $800,000.

  During 2022, the Saugus Police Department responded to about 20,460 calls for service, made 195 arrests, completed 1,584 incident reports and responded to 530 motor vehicle accidents. The department also issued 776 traffic citations and made 1,466 motor vehicle stops.

  “Like every other department in town, the COVID-19 pandemic created some unique challenges to the Saugus Police Department,” the chief said. “Unfortunately, we had to continue to put a lot of community engagement programs on hold.”