Mayor Muriel Bowser and Council Chairman Phil Mendelson announced a new collective bargaining agreement with the D.C. Fraternal Order of Police Union.
It includes a 13% pay raise for officers, sergeants, lieutenants and above in the D.C. police department. That raise is effective starting Oct. 1.
鈥淭hey have a challenging job in normal circumstances. They鈥檝e had an even more challenging job in the last weeks,鈥� Bowser said. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e played an important role in driving down crime, not just in the last two weeks, but especially in the last two years. And we are so grateful for their work.鈥�
Mayor Bowser shared new initiatives to recruit and retain officers: expanding the take-home vehicle policy by adding 100 vehicles, supporting the removal of the mandatory retirement age, and partnering with the University of the District of Columbia to offer college credit for academy training.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to make sure that Washington, D.C., is the best big city to be a police officer,” Bowser said. “And this is work that we鈥檙e committed to doing together.鈥�
The D.C. police department has shrank over the past decade and is currently at 3,188 sworn officers. The goal is to increase that to 4,000. This year, the department hired 135 new recruits and welcomed 124 cadets.
The pay increases include cost-of-living adjustments and break down to 4.5% in fiscal year 2024, followed by 4.25% in fiscal years 2025 and 2026. In total, it will cost about $200 million over four years.
Mendelson said he will move emergency legislation at the council鈥檚 September meeting.
鈥淚 fully expect that the council will be approving this contract on the 17th so that it can be implemented as quickly as possible,鈥� he said.
Chairman of the D.C. police union Gregg Pemberton applauded Bowser and Mendelson; he said the labor agreement is a 鈥渟tart.鈥�
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot more that needs to be done to fix the police department,鈥� he said.
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