SACRAMENTO, Calif. (PSN)— The Sacramento Police Officers Association has submitted its last, best and final contract offer to the city of Sacramento after months of negotiations and mediation failed to produce a successor labor agreement.
According to a Wednesday media release from SPOA, the association said it reduced its proposals during negotiations in an effort to reach an agreement but contends the city has not adequately addressed economic issues affecting officer recruitment and retention.
The association characterized the negotiations as an issue extending beyond the labor dispute, pointing to what it describes as a continuing police staffing and retention problem in Sacramento.
According to SPOA, the Sacramento Police Department currently has approximately 613 sworn officers. The association said the city previously had about 800 sworn officers despite having a smaller population at the time and contends maintaining Sacramento's historical authorized staffing ratio would require more than 800 officers today.
SPOA also criticized the elimination of additional sworn positions in the city's 2026-27 budget and said Sacramento officers are compensated below comparable law enforcement agencies identified under the City Charter.
The association said its final proposal focuses on four areas: competitive salaries tied to the comparable-agency market established by the City Charter, improved longevity incentives to retain experienced officers, increased medical contributions to address rising health care costs, and workers' compensation reforms intended to provide injured officers with treatment and return them to work sooner.
SPOA cited a recently approved three-year labor agreement in Stockton that the association said provides most officers there with approximately 17.5% in increases over three years. SPOA argues the Stockton agreement further increases Sacramento's competitive disadvantage in recruiting and retaining officers.
The association also said its members have spent more than 1,000 days without successor contracts since 2013 and that it previously filed an unfair labor practice charge with the California Public Employment Relations Board in an effort to bring the city to the bargaining table.
SPOA said it remains willing to reach a voluntary agreement with the city. However, the association said it will invoke the arbitration process provided under the City Charter if the city rejects its final offer, taking the labor dispute before a neutral arbitrator.
The release represents SPOA's position in the ongoing labor negotiations. The city's response to the association's latest proposal was not included in the release.