Pittsburgh City Council considers study to analyze police staffing, utilization

Pittsburgh officials are looking to analyze the police force’s staffing and utilization.

Legislation advanced Wednesday would authorize the city to spend $180,000 on an agreement with Matrix Consulting Group to perform the study.

“It is a set of recommendations about the number and distribution of officers in different functions and geographic locations, as well as the appropriate ratio of sworn officers to civilians in certain types of roles,” said Jake Pawlak, director of the Office of Management and Budget.

The last such study done for the city’s police bureau was in 2005, he said.

“A lot has changed in the city since then,” Pawlak said. “A lot has changed in policing since then.”

Public Safety Director Lee Schmidt said the study will also analyze factors like how much overtime police officers work and how special events impact the work police are expected to do.

“We want to make sure we’re looking at the true needs of the bureau,” he said.

The results of the study will be taken into consideration in upcoming bargaining with the union representing the city’s police, Pawlak said, and could guide decisions in future budget years.

It also could spur a conversation about whether civilians could take over some roles currently occupied by officers, allowing them to instead patrol the streets and do work done only by law enforcement, he said.

The measure will not, however, impact immediate plans to create a new class of police trainees, he said. Officials do not plan to wait on results of this study to move ahead in training new officers, he said.

Those decisions will likely focus more on factors like the number of police eligible to retire in the coming year, which could dwindle the bureau’s numbers.

Councilman Ricky Burgess said he hopes this will launch a thoughtful, data-driven conversation about public safety’s staffing, budget and procedures.

“What we need is a very thoughtful approach to public safety,” he said.

Council members unanimously approved in the measure in a preliminary vote Wednesday, meaning it could be ready for a final vote as early as next week. Councilman Anthony Coghill was not present for the vote.