Police Commission

Rochester Police Commission Rochester, NH 03867 David R. Stevens, Commissioner David E. Winship, Jr. Commissioner James P. Gray, Commissioner MINUTES OF THE POLICE COMMISSION MEETING April 29, 2026, at 9:00 A.M. The Rochester Police Commission held a special meeting on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, at 9:00 A.M. at the Police Department – 2nd floor lecture hall. Participants in this meeting: Comm. Stevens, Comm. Winship, Comm. Gray, Chief Boudreau, Dep. Chief Swanberry, and Sr. Executive Assistant Warburton. The meeting was called to order at 9:00 A.M. A. Roll Call. The clerk called the roll marking Comm. Stevens, Comm. Winship and Comm. Gray present. 2. OLD AND UNFINISHED BUSINESS: A. Budget Discussion as presented by the City Manager to the City Council. Chairman Stevens ceded the opening discussion to Comm. Gray. Comm. Gray asked the Chief about the Department’s biggest problem and what we are doing about it. Chief Boudreau stated our biggest problem is lack of staffing resources and a lack of an experienced workforce (i.e., longevity.). We currently have seven open positions. Our response time to emergency calls is good. But response to non-emergency calls is not. Chief Boudreau said that we need to do the core job functions or we can’t do the other things. With the lack of resources (societal) when you don’t know who to call, you call the police. People are conditioned that the police will respond. There is a lot of ‘mission creep.’ The expectation for us to be everything carries over. The younger generation expects more from society and government. Comm. Gray said he understands that. The police being a central point. Comm. Gray asked what the new budget does to help you with any of those things. Chief Boudreau stated overall, not much. This is where the city is. Comm. Gray said our job is not to worry about the rest of the City. Our job is to support you and the officers. Comm. Winship stated that the Commission works for the constituents. If you can’t find people to fill the current openings there isn’t a need to budget for more of them and tie up that money. * Rochester Police Commission: 04/29/2026  Comm. Gray said, response times. How do you make it better? Chief Boudreau said you will make it better with staffing. Comm. Gray responded, “You can’t get more staff unless you fight for it.” Comm. Stevens said part of it is the laws in Concord and the retirement system. People are leaving and it’s not just locally. We have to keep them too. We have been doing aggressive marketing, and you must be aggressive with pay and benefits and working conditions. There was a brief discussion on Group 2 Retirement tiers and those differences for vested and not vested members. Comm. Stevens said realistically he would like to see more officers. But the two positions supported by the City Manager (PT fleet manager and increasing PT Admin to FT) can take some of the workload now. That’s an immediate benefit. Even if we asked for two officers, already being down seven, it is unrealistic we will get those all filled this year. Chief Boudreau said the current contract runs through June 2027, which will open negotiations this fall. In my whole career I’ve not seen the Council renegotiate anything with pay in a contract; which they did a couple of years ago. It shows the City working with us. Comm. Gray said you lose before you start if you don’t ask. Present our problems. We need more staff and more experienced staff. List the reasons people leave. Response time is this. If you want a police department responsive to the people, don’t let them [Council] decide before you even ask. Comm. Stevens said there are constraints on everything in life. The training here is good, we dedicated an officer to recruiting, we increased the pay, we added a sign on bonus and a referral bonus. The Council isn’t responsible for our full strength. Comm. Winship asked Comm. Gray, how would you propose hiring people when they are not coming in the door. That is the magic question. This isn’t just a local problem. All agencies are down. Money isn’t the sole issue. We must keep looking for new ways to attract people. Chief Boudreau said I pitched officers to the City Manager, and I’ll pitch them to the Council at the budget retreat. I am working with a national company on a staffing study that will show what our needs are. We aren’t going to do that in one fell swoop. The job burns people out. Accountability is high and in the spotlight. We are always looking for new ways to attract applicants. Chief Boudreau mentioned agencies from early in his career that were desirable destination locations for cops to work. Never did he think there would be a billboard in Portsmouth advertising for hiring. The pool of applicants is small and the requirements are high. The job is more complex with demands behind the scenes. A DWI arrest is a good two hours, and the report is 8 pages. That documentation is what is needed to get a conviction. * Rochester Police Commission: 04/29/2026  Comm. Gray said that’s what you need to put before the Council. That’s part of the tax cap calculation. Have you treated the police department fairly or should the funding have been higher. It’s the Council’s job to find the money. Going in with a defeatist attitude you’ve already lost. Chief Boudreau said the ask is there. I’ve asked every year. The extra proactive stuff pulls away from the backbone of patrol. More officers mean more cars, means more building space. Our best recruiters are the line-level officers. By and large, this isn’t a bad place to work. Comm. Gray asked, “do the rank and file have ideas to make working in Rochester more attractive?” Chief Boudreau commented that some of the things we have done in the past few years bubbled up from patrol. There was a very brief discussion on Comm. Gray’s suggested changes to the MOU and including all of the Commission. 8. MISCELLANEOUS The Commission set a nonpublic meeting for personnel for May 6, 2026, at 6:15 P.M. 9. ADJOURNMENT: Comm. Stevens adjourned the meeting at 11:02 A.M. Respectfully Submitted, Rebecca J. Warburton Sr. Executive Assistant Adopted: 05/06/26 * Rochester Police Commission: 04/29/2026