Some Selma police officers haven’t had a pay raise since 1998.

According to the most recent Alabama Peace Officers’ Association salary survey, the highest paid patrolman on the Selma force makes less than the average starting salary paid by similar-sized departments in the state.

This in the city with the second-highest crime rate in Alabama, according to National Uniform Crime Statistics Reports for 2001.

Those are just some of the reasons the Fraternal Order of Police Selma Lodge No. 12 is asking the city to fully implement the 14-step consolidated pay plan adopted by the Selma City Council in 1998.

Only about 15 police officers are currently under the 14-step pay plan. The rest remain under an older five-step plan that Hamner said lags &uot;considerably&uot; below state averages.

For example, under the five-step plan in effect in Selma, a police sergeant’s salary begins at $26,875 and tops out at $31.111. The state average for police sergeants begins at $32,800 and tops out at $46,714.

The top pay for police officers under the five-step plan is $25,601. The state average for beginning police officers is $27,441.

Under Selma’s five-step plan, the police chief’s salary begins at $49,296 and allows for no raises. The state average for police chiefs begins at $56,852 and tops out at $72,870.

Hamner said the latest proposal from the FOP asks the city to fully implement the 14-step salary plan for all officers in the department.

He added that because so many veteran officers in the upper ranks have left the department in recent years, fully implementing the 14-step plan for the upcoming fiscal year will cost the city less than $10,000 over the current fiscal year.

He said that even if the 14-step plan is fully implemented, average salaries for Selma police officers would still be lower than the state average.

Under the 14-step plan, officers’ salaries are increased on a step-by-step basis depending primarily on how long the officer remains at the department. Other factors, such as educational degrees obtained by officers during their time of service, are also taken into account.

Hamner said that Prattville, with a population approximately the same as Selma, had &uot;considerably&uot; less crime, yet offered their police personnel much higher pay.

Although the Selma Police Department is authorized to staff 73 officers, it continues to be understaffed by more than a dozen officers.

Hamner said that in 1999-2000, seven officers voluntarily left the department. In 2001-2002, that number more than doubled, with 18 officers voluntarily leaving the department.

Said Hamner, &uot;I think the numbers speak for themselves. Don’t you?&uot;

He added, &uot;With upcoming pay increases in nearby Prattville and the considerably higher pay scales already available in nearby Montgomery, it seems to us that if the Selma Police Department hopes to retain veteran officers and attract qualified applicants, it is imperative that at the very least, the 14-step plan be implemented.&uot;