March 17, 2011 NAPO Editorial in USA Today on Law Enforcement Benefits

There is a thin blue line to protect and to serve, providing security from the disorder and damage produced by crime. In today’s economic climate, one can agree that as a nation we need to look carefully at our societal priorities. But in doing this, it is vital to remember that the core responsibility of government is to safeguard the lives and liberty of the people. 

Across America public safety has seen massive cuts. Empirical data show that crime increases as the number of officers on the street declines.  Rank-and-file officers know this all too well.  With less law enforcement in our communities, officers are left with a heavier workload, placing them at greater risk; as evidenced by this year’s sharp increase in police fatalities. 

To characterize the work of rank-and-file law enforcement as unique is an understatement. There is simply no private sector profession equivalent to law enforcement. Retired officers face the challenge of a unique and not easily transferable skill set, leaving many of them with limited career, income and benefit options. 

The public justly demands that officers be fit and able to protect our citizens and communities.  That fact brings with it the reality that officers generally must retire earlier than private sector workers.  Like it or not, it’s the nature of the service.  Wilford Brimley makes a great oatmeal spokesman, but that’s not necessarily who you want sprinting up your apartment stairs at two a.m. to confront a burglar.  While some politicians who either don’t know or ignore this fact try to drum up public envy of the retirement rules under which officers serve, those very rules are necessitated by the nature of the service the public rightly expects.    A job without adequate retirement options will fail to attract the best candidates, and will lose those who have gained valuable experience. This is true of all professions, and law enforcement is no different. If we remove the prospect of a secure retirement, we as a society will find ourselves with poorer quality law enforcement at the very time we need the best we can get. 

--Bill Johnson serves as the Executive Director of the National Association of Police Organizations