Shortage of DPS troopers could be exacerbated by headcount cap [Video]

PHOENIX — The Arizona Governor’s office wants to implement a headcount cap on many government positions, according to a letter sent to state agency directors on April 19.

“It is a budgetary savings exercise,” Gov. Katie Hobbs spokesman Christian Slater told KTAR News 92.3 FM.

Leaders want to implement the headcount to manage the state’s budget shortfall. However, it could exacerbate the longstanding shortage of DPS troopers, according to John Simon, the president of the Arizona Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 32.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety has been dramatically understaffed for a long time, he said during an interview with KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show last Wednesday.

“We don’t have enough troopers as it stands right now,” Simon said. “This is gonna have a huge impact to our operations at DPS if we can’t keep growing as an agency and adding more state troopers to start solving this problem.”

How severe is the shortage of DPS troopers …