Struggling To Find Officers, Bourbon Bumps Pay

As the Bourbon Police Department struggles to hire officers and retain current ones, the city council has approved a salary increase.

Council members recently approved starting pay of $18.25 per hour.

Ward 2 Alderwoman Sonya Sewald said officer pay was a problem that needed to be addressed and could not fall off the council’s radar.

She suggested that Police Chief Scott Zwetow bring it up at every council meeting until it was solved.

“There has to be something we can do and we need to put more thought into it,” Sewald said.

A week later, the board passed the salary increase during a special session.

The city also pays 100% of officers’ health insurance and 75% for dependents, which has been the norm.

But the pay has been a sticking point, said Zwetow.

Zwetow told council members during the board’s Oct. 19 meeting that Bourbon’s pay was lacking compared to other jurisdictions.

The city has made strides on paying officers more over the last several years. At one point, officers started at less than $13 per hour.

The council responded by increasing it to $14 per hour and most recently $16 per hour, but that still wasn’t enough to compete.

Zwetow told the board he reached out to new recruits from an academy in Waynesville and had no applicants.

He said he would move on to seeing if there was any interest from Franklin County.

“Other cities can offer higher pay,” Zwetow said.

Bourbon officers are being stretched thin, covering multiple shifts while several positions are vacant.

Ordinance Officer

Zwetow also suggested the board look into hiring an ordinance officer.

“It doesn’t have to be a law enforcement officer,” he said, adding that person’s responsibility would be enforcing the city’s codes on derelict vehicles, junk in yards and houses in disrepair.

Zwetow estimated the job would take about 15 to 20 hours per week.