Understanding Trends in Law Enforcement Staffing

By Brandon Martin, Deepak Premkumar, and Mandi Acevedo

Law enforcement agencies have experienced hiring and retention challenges amid the pandemic, economic uncertainty, and changing views of the police. This report provides key trends and context for understanding officer staffing in California and highlights several obstacles for agencies moving forward.

Key Takeaways
Law enforcement agencies at the state, county, and local levels employ more than 77,000 individuals with arrest powers across California spending about $28 billion on policing. Research shows that hiring additional law enforcement officers reduces crime, especially violent crime. Yet agencies have experienced several challenges around officer recruitment and retention in recent years amid the COVID-19 pandemic, economic uncertainty, and societal changes.

In this report, we bring together several new and underused data sources to provide key trends and context for understanding officer staffing in California, highlighting several possible challenges for agencies moving forward

The number of officers has decreased since the pandemic. Despite small growth over the last two years, the statewide officer count (77,200) in 2024 is 3 percent less than it was in 2019 (79,600). California has 196 officers per 100,000 residents, down from a peak of 221 in 2008. → Officer demographics have shifted. Although officers are predominantly male, the share of female officers has risen over time, from 12.8 percent in 2005 to 15.3 percent in 2024. Looking at race/ethnicity, representation of white and Black officers has declined over the last two decades, while representation of Latino officers has increased significantly and representation of Asian officers has remained largely unchanged. Average officer age and tenure have stayed relatively stable. Recent research shows benefits to having more female, Latino, Black, older, and experienced officers. → Staffing trends differ based on agency size and type. While agencies of all sizes saw declines in staffing after the Great Recession, the post-pandemic drop was concentrated in large agencies with over 100 officers. In recent years, rural agencies have experienced more volatile changes in staffing than non-rural agencies. And over the last two decades, staffing levels have risen at sheriff’s departments while decreasing slightly at police departments. → Officer retention has declined. From 2016 to 2020, total separations—including resignations, retirements, and terminations—rose steadily at California law enforcement agencies, by about 11 percent.

Separations then went up more than 30 percent between 2020 and 2022, potentially influenced by factors like the pandemic and protests following the murder of George Floyd. → Average salaries have decreased slightly; agencies are increasing overtime pay. After adjusting for inflation, the average base salary for officers declined between 2011 and 2023, from $116,000 to $110,000, possibly due to more experienced officers leaving. Over this time, average overtime pay grew from $10,000 to over $25,000. Though rural and non-rural agencies had similar overtime pay in 2011, there was a large difference by 2023 ($16,000 rural, $28,000 non-rural). → Agency competition and pay are key challenges to recruitment and retention. Respondents in our survey say that location issues, like remoteness of agency as well as housing costs and availability, also play a role. When it comes to hiring, agencies report that unqualified applicants are an issue. About 30 percent of respondents indicate that limited staff capacity has led to shifts in services or response priorities, such as deprioritizing non-criminal medical calls.