Jan. 10—The Maine State Police continue to dole out millions in overtime wages every year, with a few officers amassing six figures in OT on top of their regular pay.
Overtime payouts hit a record $8.5 million in 2023, the most recent year for which data is available. Included in that total is $223,816 in overtime costs from the agency’s response to the mass shooting in Lewiston.
While efforts to recruit more staff will eventually help curb these high costs — the agency hired about 50 people this year, 10 of whom were onboarded this month — the state’s largest police agency also is taking on more responsibilities at the same time it is trying to fill staff vacancies, Lt. Col. Brian Scott said in a recent phone interview.
Wage data from 2024 is scheduled to be released this month, and overtime costs are expected to increase again because of state-mandated raises, said Scott, who is second in command at the agency. He doesn’t anticipate a reduction in overtime payouts until fiscal year 2026, after new recruits wrap up their training and can pick up these extra jobs and work shifts by themselves.
He said it’s taken some time to climb out of the staffing issues that were amplified in 2020 by general labor shortages, the COVID-19 pandemic and the change in political climate amid protests after George Floyd’s murder by Minnesota police. Now, the agency is headed in the right direction, Scott said.
A class of 22 troopers is expected to graduate training next month, giving Maine its largest state police class this century, Scott said. Today, the state police employ 324 sworn personnel, 28 of whom are still in various stages of training, and have 27 vacant positions. By this time next year, Scott said the agency’s total vacancies will likely dwindle to single digits.
“Our staffing levels are coming up and our ability to hire has finally caught on, instead of being outpaced by retirements and resignations,” he said. “We’re hiring, now, at a faster rate than people are retiring and resigning.”
OVERTIME RULES
Trooper pay ranges from $32.18 per hour to $44.38 per hour with seniority. Overtime pay is generally time and a half, but if a trooper is ordered to work on their day off, they earn double time.
Overtime wages incurred in 2024 will be higher than in 2023 because of multiple pay raises, Scott said. All state employees earned a 6% raise in January and a 3% raise in July. State police also reclassified state troopers, resulting in a 13.7% pay bump. And every year, if troopers pass their performance evaluation, they earn a 4% raise.
The troopers’ employee contract spells out two rules to ensure they don’t work too long. They can’t work more than 18 hours in a 24-hour period without a six-hour break and can’t work over 80 hours in a week, aside from “emergent operational needs” that are approved by a supervisor.
“We don’t want our troopers working too many hours to the point that they’re fatigued where it could impact their health, their fitness and their decision-making and their ability to do their job,” Scott said.
Mark Nickerson, president of a foundation for retired Maine troopers, said that during his 28 years as a trooper overtime hours were “basically unlimited,” given how demanding the job is. He said it wasn’t uncommon for him and his peers to log more than 300 hours per month.
Nickerson said it was relatively easy to unintentionally violate overtime policies because he was taught to stay on scene “until the job was done.” He said he can’t count how many times he’d catch the sunrise driving home after his shift surpassed 18 hours.
But in late 2023, Col. William Ross, head of the Maine State Police, told Scott it was time to conduct an audit on excessive overtime wages. The agency conducts investigations like these on a regular basis, Scott said. A spokesperson for the state police said the agency could not provide a copy of the audit to the Press Herald because it is an internal document.
His probe of the top 10 earners revealed that three people could have violated the 18-hour and 80-hour policies. Those three staffers were investigated and two were not disciplined. Scott found that one person, Sgt. Jonathan Leach, had violated the policy 20 times from June 2023 to December 2023.
Leach was the second-highest overtime earner with $117,486.02 on top of his $95,199.20 in regular wages in 2023. The top overtime earner was Cpl. Jonathan Russell, with $127,637.25 in addition to his regular $84,796.68.
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Leach retired in August 2024, a month before the investigation was completed, so he was not disciplined. Lt. Jason Madore, Leach’s supervisor, was put under investigation as a result. Scott sent him a written reprimand in September for improperly signing off on Leach’s hours.
The Press Herald was unable to reach Leach or a representative from the Maine State Troopers Association for comment.
FEWER TROOPERS, MORE ASSIGNMENTS
This year, the agency has funding for 351 total positions. Back in the 1980s, state police had a full complement of 373, Scott said. But while the agency has shrunk, its responsibilities have grown.
For example, in recent years Maine has seen an increase in homicides — most of which are investigated by the state police. Maine State Police recorded 35 homicides in 2024, and 53 homicides in 2023 — the mass shooting in Lewiston accounted for 18 of those deaths. Advances in technology and social media have made homicide investigations more lengthy and complicated, Scott said.
And the demand for special units, like the tactical team, has also increased, Scott said. The team deployed about 115 times in 2024, compared to 99 in 2023.
State police also have been getting more requests to help with security at construction sites and escort oversized loads, Scott said. In 2023, when the agency was down 59 troopers, one troop provided about 800 escorts for a windmill project in Searsport, for example.
The Maine State Police used their overtime budget and salary savings from vacancies — all funded by taxpayer dollars — to cover most of the $8.5 million in 2023, Scott said. Outside entities such as the Maine Turnpike and construction companies paid for $1.6 million of the costs through contracts for special details.
“We want to be as responsible as we can with taxpayer monies and work our troopers as few hours as possible as is required to get the job done,” Scott said.
Nickerson, the retired trooper, said the state police have been shorthanded since he started in 1977. While picking up more overtime shifts and earning extra money can be a perk for officers with seniority, Nickerson said the overtime shifts wouldn’t be necessary if the agency had enough manpower.
The Maine State Police asked the state for more funding to address these needs. Gov. Janet Mills helped increase the agency’s head count by over 20 staffers, which represented a level of support that state police “hadn’t seen under prior administrations,” Scott said. But their attempts to add even more employees have failed.
“Our agency hasn’t proportionately grown with the demands that have been placed on it over the years,” Scott said. “Although we’ve had numerous attempts at increasing our complement, we haven’t always been successful at making it through the entire legislative process.”
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