Little Rock and North Little Rock are both considering raising police compensation

Little Rock, Arkansas – After the recent elections, central Arkansas’ cities are concentrating on their next budgets, which may include pay increases and new patrol cars for the local police.

The emphasis on law enforcement support comes at a time when police departments nationwide, including those in Arkansas, are experiencing staffing and recruitment issues.

With more competitive beginning salaries for police, North Little Rock and Little Rock are both attempting to address this problem.

On Monday night, North Little Rock passed a new budget that will raise pay by almost $6,000, with the new entry-level compensation for 2023 being posted at $48,000 as opposed to the previously agreed-upon base salary for 2022 of $42,240.

To match the pay of the Arkansas State Police, Little Rock City Director Dean Kumpuris proposed a comparable hike on Tuesday. However, the vote was postponed and will now take place in two weeks.

“There’s no urgency about it other than to say that we’re taking public safety seriously,” Kumpuris said at the board meeting.

The starting pay are as follows in accordance with the Little Rock resolution and the most recent North Little Rock Police posted salaries:

Little Rock Police: $44,636.80
North Little Rock Police: $48,000
Arkansas State Police: $54,000

Kumpuris also suggested providing funding for 50 extra patrol cars and a new evidence storage facility for the Little Rock Police.

“We’re 150 police cars short of what we need right now we don’t have a property room that works,” Kumpuris said.

While Mayor Frank Scott Jr. was silent on Tuesday, he revealed last Friday that the support of the police played a significant role in his campaign for reelection.

“We’ve been focusing on a holistic, comprehensive approach of targeted patrols and high crime areas, increase community police presence,” Scott Jr said.