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Cost Benefit Analysis of Reserve Officer Program

NCJ Number
96325
Author(s)
F E Winslow
Date Published
1984
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This cost-benefit analysis of the reserve officer program of the Irvine Police Department (California) recommends that the program be continued, with some modifications.
Abstract
The study gathered data on both the costs and the benefits of the program, which uses reserve officers to supplement police coverage. It currently takes 9.75 months of service by a reserve officer to recover savings in regular officer time equal to the cost of training and equipment. The median length of service of current reserve officers is 2 years. Overall, the program is cost effective. A beneficial change would be recruiting more technical reserves like translators, photographers, and people with administrative skills. Consideration of a career reserve is also suggested. A contract requiring repayment of part of the training and equipment costs by individuals leaving for another department before serving a set number of hours is recommended. Further, police career aspirants are suggested for use at peak periods, in exchange for scholarships to the police academy. Exhibits present data and comparisions with other police departments.