Sheriff considers changes to correction officer residency requirement
CHENANGO COUNTY – Faced with a staffing shortage and a diminishing list of eligible applicants, the Chenango County Sheriff is pitching an idea to change residency requirements for correction officers employed at the county jail.
Since correction officers are public officers, they’re required under state law to reside in New York to accept and continue employment. For decades, many counties and municipalities, including Chenango County, have also included residency requirements that mandate officers to live in the communities they serve; however, many communities are becoming less stringent, allowing sworn officers to live outside their boundaries.
Chenango Sheriff Ernest Cutting says it may be time for Chenango County to follow suit.
“Because our pool of candidates is shrinking locally, I think it may be time to look at closing the residency requirement and offer people who live in other counties the opportunity to work here without relocating to the county,” said Cutting.
The Sheriff’s Office is currently down three full-time positions and 10 part-time, which is affecting the department’s overtime budget. The biggest area of concern, according to Cutting? The jail’s corrections division, which struggles to maintain correction officers.
“It’s a tough job; a lot of people don't want to work there,” he said.
Cutting proposed the idea of amending residency requirements to the county’s Safety and Rules Committee earlier this week. Committee members inquired the sheriff’s reasoning for retaining correction officers, questioning relative issues such as the nearly $35,000 starting salary and fringe benefits for the position.
“It’s a job with good starting pay,” said Cutting. “But I think lot of younger people are moving away. I even have seasoned veterans who are leaving because of high taxes ... It’s getting harder just to keep people.”
In fact, the Sheriff’s Office has seen a big loss of personnel over the last few years. In 2013, 23 employees left the department. That number jumped to 26 in 2014; and 25 in 2015. Over the last six years, the Sheriff’s Office notes an average loss of 23 personnel per year.
Nevertheless, eliminating the county’s residency requirement would open doors to hire more applicants. The number of people who take the state-required correction officer civil service examine in Chenango County has greatly diminished over the last five years. Whereas the Sheriff’s Office once saw as many as 150 take the test (maybe 130 of whom would meet all qualifications for the position), the most recent examine attracted just 70 sign-ups; and it’s a narrow list of qualified applicants, said Cutting.
The Safety and Rules Committee did not take any further action regarding the notion.
Since correction officers are public officers, they’re required under state law to reside in New York to accept and continue employment. For decades, many counties and municipalities, including Chenango County, have also included residency requirements that mandate officers to live in the communities they serve; however, many communities are becoming less stringent, allowing sworn officers to live outside their boundaries.
Chenango Sheriff Ernest Cutting says it may be time for Chenango County to follow suit.
“Because our pool of candidates is shrinking locally, I think it may be time to look at closing the residency requirement and offer people who live in other counties the opportunity to work here without relocating to the county,” said Cutting.
The Sheriff’s Office is currently down three full-time positions and 10 part-time, which is affecting the department’s overtime budget. The biggest area of concern, according to Cutting? The jail’s corrections division, which struggles to maintain correction officers.
“It’s a tough job; a lot of people don't want to work there,” he said.
Cutting proposed the idea of amending residency requirements to the county’s Safety and Rules Committee earlier this week. Committee members inquired the sheriff’s reasoning for retaining correction officers, questioning relative issues such as the nearly $35,000 starting salary and fringe benefits for the position.
“It’s a job with good starting pay,” said Cutting. “But I think lot of younger people are moving away. I even have seasoned veterans who are leaving because of high taxes ... It’s getting harder just to keep people.”
In fact, the Sheriff’s Office has seen a big loss of personnel over the last few years. In 2013, 23 employees left the department. That number jumped to 26 in 2014; and 25 in 2015. Over the last six years, the Sheriff’s Office notes an average loss of 23 personnel per year.
Nevertheless, eliminating the county’s residency requirement would open doors to hire more applicants. The number of people who take the state-required correction officer civil service examine in Chenango County has greatly diminished over the last five years. Whereas the Sheriff’s Office once saw as many as 150 take the test (maybe 130 of whom would meet all qualifications for the position), the most recent examine attracted just 70 sign-ups; and it’s a narrow list of qualified applicants, said Cutting.
The Safety and Rules Committee did not take any further action regarding the notion.
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