Oregon State Police Announces Increased Recruitment Efforts

The Oregon State Police, like many other law enforcement agencies in Oregon and around the country, have many career opportunities now and potentially down the road.

(SALEM) - Faced with current and upcoming vacancies, law enforcement recruitment challenges, and the possible addition of trooper positions this Legislative session, Oregon State Police Superintendent Timothy McLain announced the Department is undertaking an unprecedented recruitment effort called OSP Project 200.

"OSP Project 200 is a plan developed to successfully create the internal capacity to recruit, hire, train and deploy qualified applicants for projected career opportunities with the Department during he next three years,' said Superintendent McLain.

The Oregon State Police, like many other law enforcement agencies in Oregon and around the country, have many career opportunities now and potentially down the road.

The Department's operations may be significantly impacted through budget and staffing-related decisions by Governor Kulongoski and Oregon legislators seeking to restore 24/7 patrol operations and adequate funding levels for those core services that support the greater public safety system.

Superintendent McLain is enthusiastic about the current, as well as the near future additional career opportunities as an Oregon State Police trooper.

"This is an exciting time for men and women looking at starting or changing careers. We just need to find the right people at a time when many law enforcement agencies are facing the same reality of a shrinking pool of potential applicants and local potential budget impacts," McLain said.

To set the recruitment wheels in motion the Department had to move two troopers off the road and back into recruiting assignments that were vacated during the last several years due to years of staffing reductions, fewer recruit classes, and the reality of layoffs in 2003.

The Department is looking to all of its employees to be involved in recruiting potential applicants because many prospective applicants indicated their interest in the Oregon State Police came through personal contact with a department employee.

Superintendent McLain appointed Captain Walt Markee, Director of the OSP Fish & Wildlife Division, to develop an aggressive plan that took into account present realities and future possibilities.

A two-year plan to recruit, test, select, and train 200 recruit troopers at a time when OSP is integrating training with local agencies at the new Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) facility in Salem.

A first-time Career Officer Lateral Entry Employment Program (COLEEP) to accept qualified law enforcement employees from other agencies who have a minimum of three years of full-time job experience as a sworn, paid law enforcement officer within the past six years.

A four-week training program for officers hired through the COLEEP program that will emphasize Department-related instruction and help put experienced officers on the road and in our communities sooner.

"We have had to look out of the box and consider new approaches that will deliver the best possible candidates for this Department," said Captain Markee.

Additional information about the Oregon State Police, career opportunities, and how to apply is available on our web site in the "Current Topics" and "Now Hiring" sections at www.oregon.gov/OSP.

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Hank Ruark April 6, 2007 8:06 am (Pacific time)

C-Mudge: Excellent insights, which I value since I know of your practical experience from which they come. This shows value of dialog when focused on story...my small point opened wide a solid interpretation, as will others from life experience, too. We can only hope that legislators are listening --or I should say "reading"-- these strong reflections of true public opinion from those who have a right to speak, dearly earned by frontline contacts.

Curmudgeon April 5, 2007 10:51 am (Pacific time)

The current situation is that the people aren't receptive to any NEW taxes being imposed. And I disagree with the concept of putting any further burden on the commercial trucking industry. This is something that benefits everyone that lives, or even travels through, Oregon and the cost should be spread more widely. Without spending a lot of time thinking about it, my first inclination would be to dedicate a portion of the EXISTING fuel tax to OSP, which would be a return to the time when they DID have dedicated funding. Even 3 cents per gallon would be a tremendous amount of money. Another objection I have to putting the burden on a relatively small group, such as commercial trucking, is that there is far more to the state police than traffic enforcement. All crime labs, used by every police agency in the state, are run by the state police. When there is a major crime anywhere in the state, nearly all police agencies rely on the state police for crime scene processing. The ID bureau, which maintains and catalogs fingerprint and criminal history files of every person arrested in the state of Oregon, is also run by state police. And many people don't realize that the state police also have criminal investigation, or detective, sections around the state. The state police perform many important, unnoticed functions that are unrelated to traffic enforcement, and the cost should not be borne by any one small group. It should be spread widely and evenly among the entire population. Fuel is one of the few things which touches the lives of virtually every person in the state. I have no doubt there are other good ideas out there. This just happens to be the first that comes to mind. And in spite of the general anti-tax sentiment, I believe if the legislature presented a constitutional amendment to the voters which provided untouchable, dedicated funding to the state police, from a reasonable and reliable source, it would probably pass. There is an excellent guest commentary in today's Statesman Journal regarding funding for the state police.

Hank Ruark April 4, 2007 11:19 am (Pacific time)

C-Mudge: Agree in principle AND description of current legislative session, so far...see upcoming Op Ed. How do you suggest Troopers be funded ? Seems users-of-highways, especially heavy-load commercial traffic, might well be asked to share more of any earned-dollars, dedicated to use surely in their interest.

Curmudgeon April 4, 2007 11:05 am (Pacific time)

Considering what has been done to the state police in recent decades by our legislature, I don't have much hope that this legislature is going to "fix" the problem in any substantial way. They may provide some funding for more troopers in the short term, but until there is a system in place for adequate dedicated funding it won't last. Subsequent legislatures will do what they have been doing for at least a quarter century. They'll suck the tit dry for their vote buying "social programs." The only way around our self-serving, spineless legislators is a dedicated, untouchable funding mechanism for public safety.

Hank Ruark April 4, 2007 9:42 am (Pacific time)

This is surely wise, enlightened move by Trooper administration. Let's hope it heats up issue for more rapid, sensible action by legislators, now seen as stalling on demanded remediation after bleeding this essential force far too long.

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