Federal uniformed police forces operate under various compensation  systems. Using this information, we  created a survey and distributed it to the 13 police forces to obtain  information on (1) entry-level officer pay and benefits, types of officer  duties, and minimum entry-level officer qualifications; (2) officer turnover  rates and the availability and use of human capital flexibilities to retain  officers; and (3) difficulties in recruiting officers, and the availability and  use of human capital flexibilities to improve recruiting. Annual pay for entry-level police officers ranged from $28,801 to  $39,427, as of September 30, 2002. Officers at 4 of the 13 police forces  received federal law enforcement retirement benefits, while officers at the  remaining 9 police forces received standard federal employee retirement  benefits. These pay raises received by entry-level officers from  October 1, 2002, through April 1, 2003, narrowed the entry-level pay gap  for some of the 13 forces. Although there are similarities in the general duties, there were differences  among the police forces with respect to the extent to which they  performed specialized functions. Sizable Differences in Turnover Rates among the 13 Police Forces

Total turnover at the 13 police forces nearly doubled from fiscal years   2001 to 2002. The total number of separations at all 13 police forces nearly doubled  (from 375 to 729) between fiscal years 2001 and 2002. The number  (316) of police officers who voluntarily separated from the 13 police forces  to take positions at TSA nearly equaled the increase in the total number of  separations (354) that occurred between fiscal years 2001 and 2002. Despite recruitment difficulties faced by many  of the police forces, none of the police forces used important human  capital recruitment flexibilities, such as recruitment bonuses and student  loan repayments, in fiscal year 2002. Some police force officials reported  that the human capital recruitment flexibilities were not used for various  reasons, such as limited funding or that the flexibilities themselves were  not available to the forces during the fiscal year 2002 recruiting cycle. Given that TSA’s Federal Air Marshal  Program has now been established, and the buildup in staffing has been  substantially completed, the increase in turnover experienced in fiscal  year 2002 at 12 of the 13 police forces may have been a one-time  occurrence. However, our objective was to provide information on pay,  retirement benefits, types of duties, turnover, and the use of human capital  flexibilities at 13 federal uniformed police forces in the Washington, D.C.  area. Appendix II: Selected Turnover Data for the 13 Police Forces

Table 7 shows, among other things, that during fiscal year 2002, 12 of the  13 police forces experienced increased turnover from the prior fiscal year,  while 8 of the 13 police forces experienced their highest turnover rates  over the 6-year period, from fiscal years 1997 through 2002. Additionally,  officials from several police forces reported that they were considering  providing increases in retention allowances and student loan repayments  to address their retention difficulties.
Why GAO Did This Study

Officials at several federal uniformed police forces in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area have raised concerns that disparities in pay and retirement benefits have caused their police forces to experience difficulties in recruiting and retaining officers. These concerns have increased during the past year with the significant expansion of the Federal Air Marshal Program, which has created numerous relatively high-paying job opportunities for existing federal uniformed police officers and reportedly has lured many experienced officers from their uniformed police forces. GAO's objectives were to (1) determine the differences that exist among selected federal uniformed police forces regarding entry-level pay, retirement benefits, and types of duties; (2) provide information on the differences in turnover rates among these federal uniformed police forces, including where officers who separated from the police forces went and the extent to which human capital flexibilities were available and used to address turnover; and (3) provide information on possible difficulties police forces may have faced recruiting officers and the extent to which human capital flexibilities were available to help these forces recruit officers.

What GAO Found

During fiscal year 2002, entry-level police officer salaries varied by more than $10,000 across the 13 police forces, from a high of $39,427 per year to a low of $28,801 per year. Four of the 13 police forces received federal law enforcement retirement benefits. Between October 1, 2002, and April 1, 2003, 12 of the 13 police forces received pay increases, which narrowed the pay gap for entry-level officers at some of the 13 forces. Officials at the 13 police forces reported that while officers performed many of the same types of duties, the extent to which they performed specialized functions varied. Total turnover at the 13 police forces nearly doubled (from 375 to 729) between fiscal years 2001 and 2002. Additionally, during fiscal year 2002, 8 of the 13 police forces experienced their highest annual turnover rates over the 6-year period, from fiscal years 1997 through 2002. Sizable differences existed in the turnover rates among the 13 federal uniformed police forces during fiscal year 2002. The availability and use of human capital flexibilities to retain employees, such as retention allowances, varied. GAO found that the increase in the number of separations (354) across the 13 police forces between fiscal years 2001 and 2002 almost equaled the number of officers (316) who left their forces to join the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Given that the buildup in staffing for TSA's Federal Air Marshal Program has been substantially completed, the increase in turnover experienced in fiscal year 2002 at 12 of the 13 police forces may have been a one-time occurrence. Officials at 9 of 13 police forces reported at least some difficulty recruiting officers. However, none of the police forces used important human capital flexibilities, such as recruitment bonuses and student loan repayments, during fiscal year 2002.