COLUMBIA, S.C. — Forest Acres Police Department says they are having retention problems with officers "aging out" too quickly.
"Retention has been a struggle," Forest Acres Chief, Don Robinson explained, "People who have been working in long careers, they're eligible for retirement and they're opting to go out, and it seems the timing in the last year or so has been a lot more than in the past."
According to PEBA, the organization overseeing law enforcement retirement systems and state health plans, police officers can retire at 55 years or older if they have 27 years of service, with membership effective on or after July 1, 2012.
Others who are now grandfathered in the 27-year rule could retire with 25 years of service at 55 or older with membership effective before July 1, 2012.
Chief Don Robinson says these rules are leaving departments like Forest Acres searching for more help.
"We have openings now and we are striving very hard to interview as many people as possible to try to start filling the vacancies we have," Robinson said.
Forest Acres currently has four openings for police officers, and the starting salary is around $52,000 per year with more added for prior training or years of experience.
A new study from the Bureau of Labor Statistics found the average yearly salary for sheriff deputies and police officers is $49,490 a year, which means Forest Acres is currently paying above-average wages.
The Newberry County Sheriff's Office and the Town of Lexington Police Department say they are experiencing the same issue.
Sergeant Cameron Mortensen with the Town of Lexington Police Department said, "We haven’t lost officers to retirement but have had several leave for opportunities with other agencies due to higher pay, better schedule, etc. The landscape within law enforcement recruitment and retention has gotten very competitive. We continue to search for the most experienced and qualified applicants to join our agency."
Newberry Sheriff Lee Foster says oftentimes deputies working in Newberry do not always make it to retirement eligibility before moving on.
"Since the state has raised the salaries on their law enforcement agencies, we're seeing a number of our people leaving and going to work for the state," Foster said.
The decline in officers has law enforcement leaders like Sheriff Foster and Chief Robinson calling on legislators to change some of the rules.
"The numbers are low in law enforcement, which not only puts law enforcement officers' lives at risk, but that puts the general public at risk. We need somebody to come forward in government to help figure this out and to get us some help," Foster said.