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The West Columbia Police Department recruitment program aims to attract qualified applicants including:

- Higher starting salaries.

- Additional promotion opportunities and other incentives to retain trained officers.

“The applicant pool has dwindled over the years,” said Police Chief Dennis Tyndall.

“Recruiting and retaining the best qualified candidates for police officers has been a challenge for law enforcement agencies across the state. It takes nine months to a year to hire and train officers depending on how fast we can get them into the Criminal Justice Academy.

“With our new salary and benefits package, I am confident we will attract and retain good, qualified and professional officers.”

The starting salary for a new recruit has increased to $39,964.09.

If the applicant is already a certified officer, the starting salary is $41,602.23.

The new program includes a $1,500 recruitment bonus for new officers, extending the range for take-home vehicles, and a $150 monthly stipend for bilingual employees who serve the population in their daily work.

Mayor Bobby Horton said, “We are pleased to be able to provide additional resources and to enable our police department to attract quality police officers and retain them.”

Mayor Pro-Tem Tem Miles said, “The most important thing we do as a city is to provide top notch law enforcement services for our citizens. We look forward to retaining and keeping the best officers possible.”

To apply to the West Columbia Police Department, go to: www.westcolumbiasc.gov/employment