MPPS Report: Michigan local governments report increased challenges with law enforcement recruitment and retention
This report presents the views of Michigan’s local government leaders, county sheriffs, local chiefs of police, and county prosecutors regarding recruitment and retention of law enforcement personnel, including police officers, sheriffs’ deputies, and assistant prosecutors. These findings are based on statewide surveys of local government leaders in the spring 2024 wave of the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), with some comparison to data collected on the fall 2015 MPPS wave.
Key findings
- In 2024, nearly three-quarters (72%) of Michigan local governments that provide or contract for law enforcement services report that the primary law enforcement agency serving their jurisdiction has problems with recruiting qualified law enforcement personnel, including 39% that say they have significant problems. Meanwhile, 48% report problems with retaining current officers.
- This represents an enormous increase since 2015, when fewer than a quarter (22%) of local government leaders reported problems with law enforcement recruitment and/or retention.
- These recruitment and retention problems are more widespread in larger jurisdictions, but even in the smallest jurisdictions that have or contract for police services, a majority report problems with recruitment.
- In the Upper Peninsula, almost all (90%) local governments involved in law enforcement say recruitment is a problem, including 52% that say there are significant problems.
- A parallel survey of county sheriffs and local chiefs of police raises further concern, with more than 80% reporting problems with deputy or police officer recruitment. In addition, 70% of Michigan sheriffs say retention is a problem for their office.
- County prosecutors’ offices also face significant challenges with recruitment and retention of their assistant prosecutors, and many also say they do not have sufficient support staff to cover their case workload.
- Approximately half of Michigan’s police chiefs (49%) and county sheriffs (51%) say their workforce size is insufficient to deliver the needed law enforcement services in the community. However, local government leaders who are responsible for these agencies’ budgets are more likely to believe that staffing is adequate.
- A majority of local government leaders, county sheriffs, and local chiefs of police say that increasing pay rates and benefits, along with non-traditional incentives such as paid time off or flexible schedules, would help with recruiting additional personnel and/or retaining current personnel, if they had the resources to provide them.