Bloomfield Considers Police/Fire Changes

Perhaps, by combining administrative functions, reduce costs, develop economies of scale, create better models of operational efficiencies, and reduce duplication of functions. This would allow better training, recruitment and retention by providing for more money for more officers, better opportunities for advancement and most importantly, provide more effective, uniform and consistent public safety.

From Bloomfield Mayor Cynthia Atencio:

From Mayor Cynthia Atencio
The Mayor and the council are actively looking into some options for Public Safety.

The Mayor and Council feel insuring public safety is our most important responsibility. Like most small and rural communities in New Mexico, this has become a critical challenge. Recruiting, training, and retaining police officers has become extremely difficult for Bloomfield. Unfortunately, Bloomfield cannot “buy” its way to a solution. Last year, the police budget accounted for 42% of the general fund budget. With the City’s challenging financial condition, spending a bigger and bigger share of the budget on the police budget at the expense of other essential city services is not an option.
Recognizing citizen concerns, the Mayor and Council redirected the focus and philosophy of policing for Bloomfield in April of this year. Citizens were demanding more community policing, more patrols and a more visible presence in the community. Consequently, a directive was given to the Police Department to move in these directions. As a result, neighborhood watch programs have been developed. In addition, communication with the Police has been improved with “coffee with a cop” programs. A Police advisory committee has also been set up. Our Police department has increased its patrols. Meetings have been held with the Sheriff’s Department and New Mexico State Police to provide cooperative and additional security. However, the problem remains: a shortage of officers and the inability to hire and retain more officers.

The Council recently raised wages to make officers pay competitive with local law enforcement agencies. Despite this, it is difficult for Bloomfield to attract new officers. Bloomfield is recognized by other law enforcement agencies as their training ground for new officers. After investing significant money in training officers, Bloomfield officers leave for higher pay and advancement opportunities. For Bloomfield, it has become a “zero sum game” that cannot continue.
In January, Bloomfield had 18 officers. Today, we have 13 and the numbers are dwindling. We must work expeditiously to solve this problem in order to provide the most efficient and effective police protection that is possible within our budget constraints. This means putting all ideas on the table to explore viable options to meet this goal. This includes discussions with the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office. Would Bloomfield and San Juan County be better served with a partnership? Perhaps, by combining administrative functions, reduce costs, develop economies of scale, create better models of operational efficiencies, and reduce duplication of functions. This would allow better training, recruitment and retention by providing for more money for more officers, better opportunities for advancement and most importantly, provide more effective, uniform and consistent public safety.

We must act now to solve this problem by examining all options. Once we have viable options, facts and figures, community discussions will be held to review these options. There can be no excuses or rationalizations for not insuring efficient and effective public safety. This issue has moved from “what we would like to have” to “what we must have”. Please keep an open mind as we explore our different options. Together, we can solve this emergency. 
In addition, the idea/proposal of possibly contracting personnel services for the fire department with San Juan County Fire was brought forth by Chief Mohler. His thoughts have merit that may benefit both the Bloomfield Fire Department and San Juan County Fire. This too is only a discussion at this time.
The Mayor and Council are working diligently on many areas of concern and we take our job seriously. These explorations are not only limited to public safety as there are many functions the city provides and most of them do not generate substantial revenue to sustain themselves. We have been and continue to review all operations of the city to ensure the most cost effective operations to serve the community.

We are committed to working with the Citizens to make these important decisions. Our number one priority to make sure our Citizens, Business and Employees are safe.