LMPD recruits learn value of community service

Going to 5 years in the near future.....

It's been proven, not only locally but throughout other departments nationally that the take-home car program does indeed reduce costs in the long-run, as far as vehicle maintenance costs are concerned.

Then there's the (sometimes intangible) benefit of the increased (perceived) police-presence as a crime deterrent.

One of the reasons LMPD is (and has been) in a car-crunch for years is that in 2003/04 there was zero money budgeted for vehicle purchases (first year of merged government...thanks Jer). That put us way behind. Every year since then, the department gets less money than requested for vehicle replacement funds. It was only a matter of time before it caught up and there just wouldn't be enough cars to go around.

The cars were always used as a recruiting tool, and as such they should have been written in contract years ago. That being said, everyone has to at least admit when reality sets in, and agree that budget-wise, something has to be done.

The cars are an easy target for the bean counters...and the public at large for that matter. If they had it their way, the take home program would cease to exist. That would look good on paper (at first), until the reality of increased maintenance cost of a pool-only fleet set in (which due to attrition, would be a few years out).

Maybe the best compromise would be the "drive only to/from work" and while on-duty approach. That way, at least the maintenance benefit would still be there, and at least part of the "police presence" factor, with the cars in driveways across the county. Also, you'd get to keep all your gear in your car ready to go, which is a huge plus not only for the individual officer, but for the department as well to have officers ready to hit the streets at shift-change, versus waiting for the cars to come in from the previous shift, load equipment, etc...

I enjoyed using my take home over the years while off-duty just as much as the next guy/girl, and still miss the gas card since retirement! But if the alternative was the elimination of the take home program altogether, the "to/from only" rule would have been at least palatable.

22 years ago when I was first hired (LPD), we typically didn't get a take home until around 2 to 3 years on. Maybe allowing a new officer to mature a bit before giving them their own take home isn't such a bad thing. If new hires know up front that they aren't receiving a take home until the third year, then fair enough.

I agree with one of the previous posters that the cars shouldn't be used (or viewed) as the proverbial carrot. If the take home program is eliminated, it'd be inconvienent and an increased cost to the officers (mainly those who over-rely on the car), but life would go on.

At that point, it'd be up to the troops to stand their ground at contract time and work toward increased wages to counter the loss of the value of the take home car. You'd have to consider that glass "half-full", as at least those monies would count toward your pension, which the car does not.

Keeping my fingers crossed that it works out for you all!