Western Wisconsin City Loses Entire Police Force
Arcadia's losses reflect national problem recruiting, retaining police officers.
Matty Ring (CC-BY)
In late April, the Trempealeau County Times posted a sobering headline: “Last Arcadia Police Officer Resigns.”
The article recounted how the Arcadia Police Department’s former chief of 10 years left in January, with the remaining four officers following suit months later.
Law enforcement veterans say what happened in Arcadia highlights unique staffing challenges small departments face in an increasingly tight and competitive job market.
Viroqua Police Chief Rick Niedfeldt is familiar with the situation in Arcadia. For years, he’s helped the smaller department, located around 80 miles to the north of Viroqua, as a part-time officer staffing large events such as the city’s Ashley For the Arts music festival.
Niedfeldt said when the former chief left, the remaining officers, who were young and relatively new to law enforcement, were not interested in taking the reins.
“They wanted to work for her,” Niedfeldt said. “And she wasn’t going to be there anymore. They were starting to seek jobs elsewhere, and then realized that there’s more money elsewhere.”
He said those officers eventually took jobs with the nearby Jackson County Sheriff’s Department and police department in the city of Osseo.
Niedfeldt said the vacancies not only affected Arcadia, but also put more strain on Trempealeau County Sheriff’s Office deputies who had to respond to additional calls from the city while covering the rest of the 733-square-mile county.
Smaller pool of recruits, many hired before beginning police academy
Recruitment and retention challenges for law enforcement aren’t new, but they were compounded following the 2020 killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, which sparked riots and activists’ calls to “defund the police” around the nation. A 2021 survey of nearly 200 police departments found hiring dropped by 5 percent, resignations climbed by 18 percent and retirements increased 45 percent.
A 2024 survey by the International Association of Chiefs of Police found that 81 percent of agencies in Midwestern states reported having more trouble recruiting new officers in the past five years.
“Smaller agencies (72%) were also slightly more likely to report difficulties with their recruitment efforts, compared to midsize (69%) and large (63%) agencies,” the study said.
In addition to being on Arcadia’s part-time roster and the chief of his own 10-person department in Viroqua, Niedfeldt is also an instructor for Western Technical College’s police academy. He said a lot has changed since 2020.
When he went through the academy years earlier, recruits generally paid their own way and hoped to find a job after graduation. He said now, departments across Wisconsin are paying the $5,000 academy cost, which is covered by the state.
“My last academy, I think we had 22 (recruits),” Niedfeldt said. “And I think 21 of them were hired before their first day (at the academy). That is almost totally flipped from just four years ago.”
Niedfeldt said there have been shifts in the pool of applicants at his own department too. Around 2014, he said, he received more than 100 applications for a single part-time job. After 2021, he said he saw eight applicants for a full-time job, a number of whom weren’t qualified.
“I had, really, a pool of two or three for one job, and that is across the board,” Niedfeldt said. According to the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Network, a state database of law enforcement job postings, as of late May there were 87 postings from departments seeking part-time and full-time police officers.
Smaller police departments can’t keep pace with pay, advancement opportunities offered by larger cities
Niedfeldt said one of the top recruitment and retention challenges facing smaller police departments is pay. With smaller budgets, they’re not able to match the hourly rates or salaries offered by departments in larger cities.
In one example, the small Chetek Police Department in Chippewa County was offering around $24 per hour for a full time officer position. Another opening in nearby Chippewa Falls offered starting wages of between $31 and $36 per hour.
Meanwhile, to address its own staffing challenges, the city of Milwaukee announced a plan in November to give police officers with at least one year of experience $10,000 bonuses if they agree to join the Milwaukee Police Department and stay in the city for at least four years.
Kent Johnson is the chief of police for the Blair Police Department, which has four full-time officers, including himself, and is located around 30 minutes east of Arcadia. He said while recruiting potential officers is challenging for departments of all sizes, there are unique challenges for small departments. Johnson said that’s especially true for police chiefs, like him, who regularly do patrols.
“I’m still out on the road, I’m taking calls, plus I’m doing all the administrative stuff and everything else too,” Johnson said. “So, it’s much more difficult for us to get out and try to find candidates.”
He said recruits and young officers often look for specialized work like being assigned to a K9 unit or tactical team, which small departments can’t always offer. Johnson said there may not be as many opportunities for advancement at smaller departments, either. He said he’s getting ready to retire, and if his 26-year-old assistant chief were to take over, “whoever’s working under him, that might be a while before they get an advancement opportunity.”
State lawmakers attempting to address recruitment, retention challenges
Wisconsin League of Municipalities Executive Director Jerry Deschane said the recruitment and retention challenges faced for years by police departments large and small have gotten the attention of state lawmakers.
Deschane said the Wisconsin Legislature is considering a bill that would grant tax relief to municipalities to offset police and fire department costs. Another bill, introduced in February, would let retired law enforcement officers and firefighters go back to work without losing their pensions.
“Now, that’s proposed legislation that’s a long way from the finish line,” Deschane said. “People are talking about different solutions. The reality is, this problem is going to be with us for a good, solid generation, and so we’re going to always be looking for new ideas.”
A western Wisconsin city lost its entire police force, highlighting staffing challenges for smaller departments was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
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