BELTON, Texas — Belton is exploring ways to get more officers on the streets and keep them there, as the city faces a record-high police turnover rate.
Eight officers have left the Belton Police Department since the start of fiscal year 2026, bringing the department's turnover rate to more than 17%. The city is now considering raising starting pay for new officers and cadets to $70,000 a year.
Joseph Lewis, a Bell County resident, said the difficulty of the job justifies higher compensation.
"The harder the job is, the more you have to pay somebody."
Belton Police Chief Larry Berg said the proposal has broad support from city leadership.
"So one of the first things that we have had a lot of council support and city management support on raising the starting pay, so we can be more competitive with surrounding cities."
Under the proposal, new officers would remain at the $70,000 pay level for their first six years before advancing to the next step. The change would cost the city about $130,000 a year. That money is already included in the city's budget, which will be voted on this year.
Berg said the change would benefit the broader Belton community.
"The biggest thing for the Belton community, I think, is we can recruit and retain good, good quality officers. I think you can see from last Thursday's events that we were side by side with the Temple and Killeen police departments."
Lewis said public safety is worth the investment.
"I think enforcing the laws, having a safe place to live is important, and policemen are a very important part of that. So if we need to pay them more to have a safer city, then we should."
If approved, the new pay scale would take effect Oct. 3.
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