Federal Uniformed Police: Selected Data on Pay, Recruitment, and Retention at 13 Police Forces in the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Area
Released: 2003-06-13T00:00:00

Letter

Background

Although the specific duties police officers perform may vary among police forces, federal uniformed police officers are generally responsible for providing security and safety to people and property within and sometimes surrounding federal buildings. There are a number of federal uniformed police forces operating in the Washington MSA, of which 13 had 50 or more officers as of September 30, 2001. Table 1 shows the 13 federal uniformed police forces included in our review and the number of officers in each of the police forces as of September 30, 2002.

On November 25, 2002, the Homeland Security Act of 2002 was enacted into law. The act, among other things, restructured parts of the executive branch of the federal government to better address the threat to the United States posed by terrorism. The act established a new Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which includes two uniformed police forces within the scope of our review—the Federal Protective Service and the Secret Service Uniformed Division. These police forces were formerly components of the General Services Administration and the Department of the Treasury, respectively. Another component of DHS is the TSA, which protects the nation’s transportation systems. TSA, which was formerly a component of the Department of Transportation, includes the Federal Air Marshal Service, which is designed to provide protection against hijacking and terrorist attacks on domestic and international airline flights. The Federal Air Marshal Program increased significantly after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, resulting in the need for TSA to recruit many Air Marshals during fiscal year 2002. By fiscal year 2003, the buildup in the Federal Air Marshal Program had been substantially completed. Federal Air Marshals are not limited to the grade and pay step structure of the federal government’s General Schedule. As a result, TSA has been able to offer air marshal recruits higher compensation and more flexible benefit packages than many other federal police forces.

Federal uniformed police forces operate under various compensation systems. Some federal police forces are covered by the General Schedule pay system and others are covered by different pay systems authorized by various laws. Since 1984, all new federal employees have been covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Federal police forces provide either standard federal retirement benefits or federal law enforcement retirement benefits.

Studies of employee retention indicate that turnover is a complex and multifaceted problem. People leave their jobs for a variety of reasons. Compensation is often cited as a primary reason for employee turnover. However, nonpay factors, such as age, job tenure, job satisfaction, and job location, may also affect individuals’ decisions to leave their jobs.

During recent years, the federal government has implemented many human capital flexibilities to help agencies attract and retain sufficient numbers of high-quality employees to complete their missions. Human capital flexibilities can include actions related to areas such as recruitment, retention, competition, position classification, incentive awards and recognition, training and development, and work-life policies. We have stated in recent reports that the effective, efficient, and transparent use of human capital flexibilities must be a key component of agency efforts to address human capital challenges. The tailored use of such flexibilities for recruiting and retaining high-quality employees is an important cornerstone of our model of strategic human capital management.

Scope and Methodology

To address our objectives, we identified federal uniformed police forces with 50 or more officers in the Washington MSA—13 in all. Specifically, we reviewed OPM data to determine the executive branch federal uniformed police forces with 50 or more police officers in the Washington MSA. We reviewed a prior report issued by the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics and our prior reports to determine the judicial and legislative branches’ federal uniformed police forces with 50 or more police officers in the Washington MSA.

In addressing each of the objectives, we interviewed officials responsible for human capital issues at each of the 13 police forces and obtained documents on recruitment and retention issues. Using this information, we created a survey and distributed it to the 13 police forces to obtain information on (1) entry-level officer pay and benefits, types of officer duties, and minimum entry-level officer qualifications; (2) officer turnover rates and the availability and use of human capital flexibilities to retain officers; and (3) difficulties in recruiting officers, and the availability and use of human capital flexibilities to improve recruiting. We reviewed and analyzed the police forces’ responses for completeness and accuracy and followed-up on any missing or unclear responses with appropriate officials.

Where possible, we verified the data using OPM’s Central Personnel Data File. In reviewing duties performed by police officers at the 13 police forces, we relied on information provided by police force officials and did not perform a detailed analysis of the differences in duties and responsibilities. Additionally, due to resource limitations, we did not survey officers who separated from the police forces to determine their reasons for leaving. We obtained this information from officials at the police forces. Although some of the police forces have police officers detailed at locations throughout the country, the data in this report are only for officers stationed in the Washington MSA. Therefore, these data are not projectable nationwide.

Entry-Level Pay and Benefits Varied among the Police Forces

Entry-level pay and retirement benefits varied widely across the 13 police forces. Annual pay for entry-level police officers ranged from $28,801 to $39,427, as of September 30, 2002. Officers at 4 of the 13 police forces received federal law enforcement retirement benefits, while officers at the remaining 9 police forces received standard federal employee retirement benefits. According to officials, all 13 police forces performed many of the same types of general duties, such as protecting people and property and screening people and materials entering and/or exiting buildings under their jurisdictions. Eleven of the 13 police forces had specialized teams and functions, such as K-9 and/or SWAT. The minimum qualification requirements and the selection processes were generally similar among most of the 13 police forces.

At $39,427 per year, the U.S. Capitol Police, Library of Congress Police, and Supreme Court Police forces had the highest starting salaries for entry-level officers, while entry-level officers at the NIH Police and Federal Protective Service received the lowest starting salaries at $28,801 per year. The salaries for officers at the remaining 8 police forces ranged from $29,917 to $38,695. Entry-level officers at 5 of the 13 police forces received an increase in pay, ranging from $788 to $1,702, upon successful completion of basic training. Four of the 13 police forces received federal law enforcement retirement benefits and received among the highest starting salaries, ranging from $37,063 to $39,427. Figure 1 provides a comparison of entry-level officer pay and retirement benefits at the 13 police forces.

Entry-level officers at 12 of the 13 police forces (all but the U.S. Postal Service Police) received increases in their starting salaries between October 1, 2002, and April 1, 2003. Entry-level officers at three of the four police forces (FBI Police, Federal Protective Service, and NIH Police) with the lowest entry-level salaries as of September 30, 2002, received raises of $5,584, $4,583, and $4,252, respectively, during the period ranging from October 1, 2002 through April 1, 2003. In addition, entry-level officers at both the U.S. Capitol Police and Library of Congress Police—two of the highest paid forces—also received salary increases of $3,739 during the same time period. These pay raises received by entry-level officers from October 1, 2002, through April 1, 2003, narrowed the entry-level pay gap for some of the 13 forces. For example, as of September 30, 2002, entry- level officers at the FBI Police received a salary $8,168 less than an entry- level officer at the U.S. Capitol Police. However, as of April 1, 2003, the pay gap between entry-level officers at the two forces had narrowed to $6,323. Figure 2 provides information on pay increases that entry-level officers received from October 1, 2002, through April 1, 2003, along with entry-level officer pay rates as of April 1, 2003.

The Secret Service noted that the Uniformed Division has full police powers in Washington, D.C., and that it further has the authority to perform its protective duties throughout the United States.

Although there are similarities in the general duties, there were differences among the police forces with respect to the extent to which they performed specialized functions. Table 3 shows that 11 of the 13 police forces reported that they performed at least one specialized function; 2 police forces (Government Printing Office Police and U.S. Postal Service Police) reported that they did not perform specialized functions.

The minimum qualification requirements and the selection processes were generally similar among most of the 13 police forces. As part of the selection process, all 13 police forces required new hires to have successfully completed an application, an interview(s), a medical examination, a background investigation, and a drug test. Each force also had at least one additional requirement, such as a security clearance or physical fitness evaluation. The U.S. Postal Service Police was the only force that did not require a high school diploma or prior law enforcement experience. For additional information on qualification requirements and the selection process for the 13 police forces, see appendix IV.

Sizable Differences in Turnover Rates among the 13 Police Forces

Total turnover at the 13 police forces nearly doubled from fiscal years 2001 to 2002. Additionally, during fiscal year 2002, 8 of the 13 police forces experienced their highest annual turnover rates over the 6-year period, from fiscal years 1997 through 2002. There were sizable differences in turnover rates among the 13 police forces during fiscal year 2002. NIH Police reported the highest turnover rate at 58 percent. The turnover rates for the remaining 12 police forces ranged from 11 percent to 41 percent. Of the 729 officers who separated from the 13 police forces in fiscal year 2002, about 82 percent (599), excluding retirements, voluntarily separated.

About 53 percent (316) of the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from the police forces in fiscal year 2002 went to TSA. Additionally, about 65 percent of the officers who voluntarily separated from the 13 police forces during fiscal year 2002 had fewer than 5 years of service on their police forces.

The total number of separations at all 13 police forces nearly doubled (from 375 to 729) between fiscal years 2001 and 2002. Turnover increased at all but 1 of the police forces (Library of Congress Police) over this period. The most significant increases in turnover occurred at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police (200 percent) and the Secret Service Uniformed Division (about 152 percent). In addition, during fiscal year 2002, 8 of the 13 police forces experienced their highest annual turnover rates over the 6-year period, from fiscal years 1997 through 2002. Figure 3 displays the total number of separations for the 13 police forces over the 6-year period.

The turnover rates at the 13 police forces ranged from 11 percent at the Library of Congress Police to 58 percent at the NIH Police in fiscal year 2002. In addition to the NIH Police, 3 other police forces had turnover rates of 25 percent or greater during fiscal year 2002. The U.S. Mint Police reported the second highest turnover rate at 41 percent, followed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police at 27 percent and the Secret Service Uniformed Division at 25 percent. Table 4 shows that at each of the 13 police forces, turnover was overwhelmingly due to voluntary separations—about 18 percent (130) of turnover was due to retirements, disability, and involuntarily separations.

There was no clear pattern evident between employee pay and turnover rates during fiscal year 2002. For example, while some police forces with relatively highly paid entry-level officers such as the Library of Congress Police (11 percent) and the Supreme Court Police (13 percent) had relatively low turnover rates, other police forces with relatively highly paid entry-level officers such as the U.S. Mint Police (41 percent), Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police (27 percent), and Secret Service Uniformed Division (25 percent) experienced significantly higher turnover rates. Additionally, turnover varied significantly among the 5 police forces with relatively lower paid entry-level officers. For example, while the Federal Protective Service (19 percent) and NIH Police (58 percent) entry-level officers both received the lowest starting pay, turnover differed dramatically.

Likewise, no clear pattern existed regarding turnover among police forces receiving federal law enforcement retirement benefits and those receiving traditional federal retirement benefits. For example, entry-level officers at the Library of Congress Police, U.S. Capitol Police, and Supreme Court Police all received equivalent pay in fiscal year 2002. However, the Library of Congress (11 percent) had a lower turnover rate than the Capitol Police (13 percent) and Supreme Court Police (16 percent), despite the fact that officers at the latter 2 police forces received federal law enforcement retirement benefits. In addition, while officers at both the Park Police (19 percent) and Secret Service Uniformed Division (25 percent) received law enforcement retirement benefits, these forces experienced higher turnover rates than some forces such as U.S. Postal Service Police (14 percent) and FBI Police (17 percent), whose officers did not receive law enforcement retirement benefits and whose entry-level officers received lower starting salaries.

More than half (316) of the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from the police forces in fiscal year 2002 went to TSA—nearly all (313 of 316) to become Federal Air Marshals where they were able to earn higher salaries, federal law enforcement retirement benefits, and a type of pay premium for unscheduled duty equaling 25 percent of their base salary. The number (316) of police officers who voluntarily separated from the 13 police forces to take positions at TSA nearly equaled the increase in the total number of separations (354) that occurred between fiscal years 2001 and 2002.

About 25 percent (148) of the voluntarily separated officers accepted other federal law enforcement positions, excluding positions at TSA, and about 5 percent (32 officers) took nonlaw enforcement positions, excluding positions at TSA. Furthermore, about 9 percent (51) of the voluntarily separated officers took positions in state or local law enforcement or separated to, among other things, continue their education. Officials were unable to determine where the remaining 9 percent (52) of the voluntarily separated officers went. Table 5 provides a summary of where officers who voluntarily separated in fiscal year 2002 went.

Figure 4 shows a percentage breakdown of where the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from the 13 police forces during fiscal year 2002 went.

Although we did not survey individual officers to determine why they separated from these police forces, officials from the 13 forces reported a number of reasons that officers had separated, including to obtain better pay and/or benefits at other police forces, less overtime, and greater responsibility. Without surveying each of the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from their police forces in fiscal year 2002, we could not draw any definitive conclusions about the reasons they left. For additional details on turnover at the 13 police forces, see appendix II.

The use of human capital flexibilities to address turnover varied among the 13 police forces. For example, officials at 4 of the 13 police forces reported that they were able to offer retention allowances, which may assist the forces in retaining experienced officers, and 3 of these police forces used this tool to retain officers in fiscal year 2002. The average retention allowances paid to officers in fiscal year 2002 were about $1,000 at the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, $3,500 at the Federal Protective Service, and more than $4,200 at the NIH Police. The police forces reported various reasons for not making greater use of available human capital flexibilities in fiscal year 2002, including lack of funding for human capital flexibilities, lack of awareness among police force officials that the human capital flexibilities were available, and lack of specific requests for certain flexibilities such as time-off awards or tuition reimbursement.

The limited use of human capital flexibilities by many of the 13 police forces and the reasons provided for the limited use are consistent with our governmentwide study of the use of such authorities. In December 2002, we reported that federal agencies have not made greater use of such flexibilities for reasons such as agencies’ weak strategic human capital planning, inadequate funding for using these flexibilities given competing priorities, and managers’ and supervisors’ lack of awareness and knowledge of the flexibilities. We further stated that the insufficient or ineffective use of flexibilities can significantly hinder the ability of agencies to recruit, hire, retain, and manage their human capital. Additionally, in May 2003, we reported that OPM can better assist agencies in using human capital flexibilities by, among other things, maximizing its efforts to make the flexibilities more widely known to agencies through compiling, analyzing, and sharing information about when, where, and how the broad range of flexibilities are being used, and should be used, to help agencies meet their human capital management needs. For additional information on human capital flexibilities at the 13 police forces, see appendix III.

Most Forces Experienced Recruitment Difficulties

Nine of the 13 police forces reported difficulties recruiting officers to at least a little or some extent. Despite recruitment difficulties faced by many of the police forces, none of the police forces used important human capital recruitment flexibilities, such as recruitment bonuses and student loan repayments, in fiscal year 2002. Some police force officials reported that the human capital recruitment flexibilities were not used for various reasons, such as limited funding or that the flexibilities themselves were not available to the forces during the fiscal year 2002 recruiting cycle.

Officials at 4 of the 13 police forces (Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police, the FBI Police, Federal Protective Service, and NIH Police) reported that they were having a great or very great deal of difficulty recruiting officers. In addition, officials at 5 police forces reported that they were having difficulty recruiting officers to a little or some extent or to a moderate extent. Among the reasons given for recruitment difficulties were: low pay; the high cost of living in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area; difficulty completing the application/background investigation process; better retirement benefits at other law enforcement agencies.

Conversely, officials at 4 of the 13 police forces (Library of Congress Police, the Supreme Court Police, U.S. Mint Police, and U.S. Postal Service Police) reported that they were not having difficulty recruiting officers. Library of Congress officials attributed their police force’s lack of difficulty recruiting officers to attractive pay and working conditions and the ability to hire officers at any age above 20 and who also will not be subject to a mandatory retirement age. Supreme Court officials told us that their police force had solved a recent recruitment problem by focusing additional resources on recruiting and emphasizing the force’s attractive work environment to potential recruits. U.S. Postal Service officials reported that their police force was not experiencing a recruitment problem because it hired its police officers from within the agency. Table 6 provides a summary of the level of recruitment difficulties reported by the 13 police forces.

Although many of the police forces reported facing recruitment difficulties, none of the police forces used human capital recruitment tools, such as recruitment bonuses and student loan repayments, in fiscal year 2002. For more information on human capital flexibilities, see appendix III.

Conclusions

Without surveying each of the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from their police forces in fiscal year 2002, we could not draw any definitive conclusions about the reasons they left. However, officials at the 13 police forces included in our review reported that officers separated from their positions for such reasons as to (1) obtain better pay and/or benefits at other police forces, (2) work less overtime, and (3) assume greater responsibility.

The number of separations across the 13 police forces included in our review increased by 354 between fiscal years 2001 and 2002. This increase almost equaled the number (316) of officers who voluntarily separated from their forces to join TSA. Given that TSA’s Federal Air Marshal Program has now been established, and the buildup in staffing has been substantially completed, the increase in turnover experienced in fiscal year 2002 at 12 of the 13 police forces may have been a one-time occurrence. Additionally, the recent pay increases received by officers at 12 of the 13 police forces, along with the potential implementation of various human capital flexibilities, might also help to address recruitment and retention issues experienced by many of the police forces.

Agency Comments

We requested comments on a draft of this report from each of the 13 federal uniformed police forces included in our review. We received written comments from 12 of the 13 police forces (the Federal Protective Service did not provide comments). Of the 12 police forces that commented, 11 either generally agreed with the information presented or did not express an overall opinion about the report.

In its comments, the U.S. Secret Service raised four main issues relating to the pay, retirement benefits, and job responsibilities information. First, it suggested that we expand our review to include information on the compensation packages offered to separating officers, particularly those moving to TSA. However, our objective was to provide information on pay, retirement benefits, types of duties, turnover, and the use of human capital flexibilities at 13 federal uniformed police forces in the Washington, D.C. area. Our aim was not to compare the officers’ previous and new job pay, benefits, responsibilities, or training requirements.

Second, the U.S. Secret Service suggested that we report that a pattern existed between employee turnover and pay. However, our discussions with human capital officials in the 13 police forces found that separating officers provided them with a variety of reasons why they chose to leave their police forces, including increased pay, additional benefits, greater job satisfaction, and personal reasons. We did not contact separating officers to determine why they decided to move to other jobs and whether the new jobs was comparable in pay, benefits, and job responsibilities. Nevertheless, with the information we obtained, we were unable to discern any clear patterns between employee turnover and pay. That is, turnover varied significantly among police forces that had similar pay for entry-level officers.

Third, the U.S. Secret Service suggested that we calculate the differences in retirement benefits that would accrue to officers in the different forces. We noted in our report that different forces had different retirement plans with significant differences in benefits. However, calculating the retirement benefits of a hypothetical police officer at each of the forces was beyond the scope of our review.

Finally, the U.S. Secret Service noted that fundamental differences exist among the agencies’ authorities, responsibilities, duties, and training requirements, and that this could account for differences in compensation. We agree that differences exist among the 13 agencies, and we captured many of these differences in the report. However, we did not attempt to determine the extent to which these differences accounted for differences in police officer compensation.

We also requested and received comments from OPM. OPM was concerned that the data provided in our report will lead to unintended conclusions, citing what it considered to be a lack of substantive analysis and comparisons of the pay systems involved. OPM further commented that the data and information we report must not serve as a basis for modifying the pay structure, salaries, or retirement system of any of the police forces.

Our report provides information on 13 federal uniformed police forces that had not been previously compiled, which is useful in comparing entry-level pay, retirement benefits, types of duties, turnover rates, and the use of human capital flexibilities. In preparing this report, we worked closely with these police forces to obtain reliable information on these items, as well as the conditions and challenges confronting their operations. Nevertheless, we agree that more comprehensive information would be useful in deciding how best to deal with pay, benefit, and retention issues. As the executive branch agency responsible for establishing human capital policies and monitoring their implementation, OPM is in a good position to perform the additional analysis it believes would be useful to draw conclusions on such issues.

Most of the police forces and OPM provided technical comments, which were incorporated in the report, where appropriate. The Department of the Interior (U.S. Park Police), NIH, OPM, and the U.S. Supreme Court provided formal letters, and the U.S. Secret Service provided an internal memorandum, which are included in appendixes V through IX.

We are sending copies of this report to the Attorney General, Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Secretary of the Interior, Chair of the Capitol Police Board, the Librarian of Congress, the Public Printer, the Marshal of the Supreme Court, the Postmaster General, the Under Secretary of Transportation for Security, and the Directors of NIH, OPM, and the Pentagon Force Protection Agency. We will also provide copies of this report to the directors of each of the 13 police forces, relevant congressional committees, and Members of Congress. We will make copies of this report available to other interested parties upon request. In addition, the report will be available at no charge on GAO’s Web site at http://www.gao.gov. If you have any questions, please contact me at (202) 512-8777 or at stanar@gao.gov or Weldon McPhail, Assistant Director, at (202) 512-8644 or at mcphailw@gao.gov. See appendix X for additional GAO contacts and staff acknowledgments.

Appendix I: Counties and Cities Included in the Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area

Washington, D.C.

Appendix II: Selected Turnover Data for the 13 Police Forces

Table 7 shows, among other things, that during fiscal year 2002, 12 of the 13 police forces experienced increased turnover from the prior fiscal year, while 8 of the 13 police forces experienced their highest turnover rates over the 6-year period, from fiscal years 1997 through 2002.

Table 8 shows that officers with fewer than 5 years of experience on their forces accounted for about 65 percent of the voluntary separations in fiscal year 2002.

Figure 5 shows that officers with fewer than 2 years of service on their forces accounted for about 35 percent of the voluntary separations in fiscal year 2002, and officers with 2 to 5 years of service comprised an additional 30 percent.

Table 9 shows that approximately half (316) of the 599 police officers who voluntarily separated from their forces in fiscal year 2002 went to TSA. Of the 316 officers who went to TSA, about 53 percent (166) had fewer than 5 years of experience on their forces. An additional 19 percent (59) had 5 years to less than 10 years of experience on their forces.

Table 10 shows that about 25 percent (148) of the 599 police officers who voluntarily separated from their forces in fiscal year 2002 took other federal law enforcement positions. Officers with fewer than 5 years of experience on their forces accounted for about 79 percent (117) of the separations to other federal law enforcement positions, and officers with 5 years to less than 10 years of experience accounted for an additional 16 percent (23).

Table 11 shows that of the 13 police forces surveyed, 11 reported problems ranging in severity from a little or some extent, to a very great extent, with retaining officers in the Washington MSA. Of these 11 police forces, 4 characterized their agencies retention difficulties as a very great extent. Two police forces, the Government Printing Office Police and the Library of Congress Police, reported no difficulty with retention.

Police forces reporting difficulties indicated a number of commonalities in terms of why officers had left the forces. Among the reasons given were better pay at other agencies; better benefits, including law enforcement retirement, at other agencies; better morale at other agencies; more challenging work at other agencies; promotional opportunities at other agencies; too much overtime at their police forces; and retirements from their police forces.

Library of Congress Police officials attributed their low turnover rate to pay, working conditions, and the fact that the force does not have any age restrictions, which allows the force to hire older, more experienced officers. Each of the forces with retention difficulties reported steps taken to address the problem, including providing retention allowances, improving training, and improving working conditions. Additionally, officials from several police forces reported that they were considering providing increases in retention allowances and student loan repayments to address their retention difficulties.

Only two police forces, the Pentagon Force Protection Agency and the Supreme Court Police, reported that the measures they had taken had solved the retention problem to a great extent; the remaining police forces indicated either that the measures taken had had a little or no effect or that it was too early to determine whether the measures taken would solve the retention problem.

Appendix III: Use of Human Capital Flexibilities

Table 12 illustrates the use of human capital flexibilities by the 13 police forces included in our review. While agency officials reported that a variety of human capital flexibilities were available across the agencies, there was variation among agencies both in terms of the specific flexibilities available and in the frequency of use. For instance, only 3 of the 13 agencies reported the availability of recruitment bonuses, and none were given in fiscal year 2002. Ten of the 13 reported the availability of performance-based cash awards, and 9 of these agencies made these awards in amounts averaging $109-$2,500.

Appendix IV: Recruiting Strategies and New Hire Selection Process

Appendix V: Comments from the Department of the Interior

Appendix VI: Comments from the National Institutes of Health

Appendix VII: Comments from the Office of Personnel Management

Appendix VIII: Comments from the United States Secret Service

Appendix IX: Comments from the Supreme Court of the United States

Appendix X: GAO Contacts and Acknowledgments

GAO Contacts

Staff Acknowledgments

In addition to the persons named above, Leo M. Barbour, Susan L. Conlon, Evan Gilman, Kimberley Granger, Geoffrey Hamilton, Laura Luo, Michael O’ Donnell, Doris Page, George Scott, Lou V.B. Smith, Edward H. Stephenson, Jr., Maria D. Strudwick, Mark Tremba, and Gregory H. Wilmoth made key contributions to this report.