Racine police budget 2027: $1M more for overtime
Spending would rise 6.2% without expanding the authorized sworn force. The proposal also removes funding for Flock cameras, as the chief discusses a possible replacement.
Oct 13, 2026, 9:41 PM CT
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RACINE, Wis. — The proposed 2027 Racine police budget would set aside $2.5 million for police overtime next year, $1 million more than in its adopted 2026 budget, under Mayor Cory Mason’s proposed spending plan.
The Police Department’s overall General Fund budget would rise by $2.3 million, or 6.2%, to $39.2 million, according to the city’s budget tables. The staffing plan keeps the authorized sworn force at 196 positions.
The city’s proposed budget book identifies settled police labor agreements and expiring overtime grant support as pressures on spending.
At the Oct. 12 council budget review, the police chief reported 183 sworn personnel, 13 below that authorization.
“We have five recruits set to graduate in December with a new class of five beginning in January,” he said.
The chief also reported a 12% increase in calls for service, from 45,738 to 51,228 in the prior-year comparison he presented.
“So, we’re doing a lot more,” he told the council.
He did not give the exact reporting dates. Calls measure police activity, not just reported crimes.
Racine County Eye has requested current crime comparisons and an explanation of how much of the overtime increase would replace grant support, cover vacancies or pay for other police work.
Where the Racine police budget would change
The police salary line would increase by $1.4 million, from $18 million to $19.4 million. The police Wisconsin Retirement System contribution line would rise by about $327,000, while the police health-care line would fall by about $712,000, according to the proposed budget.
Within the unchanged sworn authorization, the city’s staffing plan would shift two positions from traffic investigator to police officer. That would leave three traffic investigator positions and 117 police officer positions, without expanding the overall force.
Fewer shootings, but a mixed crime picture
The department’s 2025 annual report reports a 42% decline in nonfatal shootings and a 19% decline in shots-fired incidents compared with 2024.
Other reported offenses moved in different directions. Aggravated assaults increased from 179 to 197, while robberies fell from 49 to 38.
These full-year comparisons describe 2025, not current-year crime trends.
For 2027, the department proposes continuing Group Violence Intervention work with the Department of Community Safety and reducing the incidence and impact of domestic and intimate partner violence by 10%, according to the budget narrative. Its priorities include coordinated incident reviews, enforcement and victim support.
A camera-system change and continued investigative technology
The proposal removes $75,000 for Flock license-plate-reader cameras while leaving open the option to switch to another system, according to the chief’s Oct. 12 presentation.
“We’re prepared to speak about a different automated license plate reader system,” he said.
He did not identify a replacement vendor or price.
The chief said police plan to maintain Raven gunshot detection, drones, cellphone forensics and city and private camera networks. He also described improvements to crime-analysis software and a proposed public-safety IT technician housed at police headquarters.
The department’s investigative tools include the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, which develops potential links between shootings by comparing markings on fired cartridge cases, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The city’s budget narrative also lists a Crime Gun Intelligence Center that collects and shares information from recovered guns.
Police would enter the second year of a five-year Axon technology agreement, according to the budget narrative.
What the council will decide
Under the proposed budget’s amendment rules, aldermen must offset any added spending with equal or greater cuts.
The city’s published budget schedule lists a public hearing for 6 p.m. Oct. 14, amendment deliberations Oct. 19 and final adoption Oct. 20.
Related coverage: Why Racine proposes using $5.1 million in savings and how residents can weigh in on the budget.
