BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The Buffalo Police Department doesn't have enough police officers to cover its own contracted minimum staffing levels, forcing a steep rise in the overtime hours needed to keep patrols staffed and 911 calls answered.
That's the central finding of my months-long investigation. After filing a Freedom of Information request to the city, I confirmed the BPD is understaffed to the point where it's relying on overtime to meet basic policing needs. And the problem is only going to get worse before it gets better.
My FOIL request asked for the number of overtime hours officers are working to cover contracted minimum staffing levels, known as minimum manpower overtime hours.
Fiscal Year 2025 to 2026 saw officers undertake 35,526 minimum manpower overtime hours total, a 65% increase on the previous year.
That isn't special detail overtime, such as policing Chippewa St. nightlife or the Saint Patrick's Day Parade, but those hours cover the basics such as responding to 911 calls.
"I'm not going to make light of the situation. We need to hire officers," said Buffalo Police Commissioner Erika Shields. "We inherited this and we are pushing the timeline as aggressively as possible and I sincerely hope we can get officers on board."
Some of the minimum manpower overtime hours are covered on a voluntary basis, and sometimes officers are forced to cover the shifts.
"I don't know that the department needs to be larger than its authorized strength but what I can say is that we definitely need more officers at the rank of police officer," Shields explained.
WATCH: 'Crisis mode': Buffalo Police relying on overtime to meet minimum staffing needs
HOW DID WE GET HERE?
The last time the city administered a police exam for new recruits was in 2023, and Shields says the subsequent three-year pause caused the problem.
"There should have been a hiring exam two years ago," Shields said. "And if not two years ago, absolutely last year because there's such a lag time between administering an exam and getting [officers] on the street, you can't wait until you're in a crisis mode."
Under previous administrations, the city created and administered its own police exam for $300,000, according to Shields. Instead, the commissioner is now planning for the city to use the New York State police exam, which is held twice a year. The regular cadence should help avoid another recruitment gap in the future.
OFFICER STAFFING WILL GET WORSE BEFORE IT GETS BETTER
The next available opportunity to recruit through the state police exam is not until April 2027. The rigorous officer recruitment, testing and training process takes months, meaning new officers won't be on the streets until sometime in 2028 at the earliest.
With a potential two-year wait until a fresh set of boots on the ground, Shields tells me she's working on alternatives. She has secured authorization from Erie County to recruit from their list of potential new officers in the interim.
"We're scrubbing that list right now as quickly as possible to see if there's anyone that we can get into the January class [of police cadets]," said Shields.
Using the state exam also allows the BPD to take advantage of "lateral hiring," says Shields. That means an individual who has taken the state exam is able to be hired by the BPD without going through an academy.
"So we're trying to expedite and exploit any opportunities right now to speed up the hiring and to get people on board," Shields said.
POLICE UNION REACTION
Buffalo Police Benevolent Association President John Davidson has been sounding the alarm over staffing for months. He said the public should be "alarmed" at the skyrocketing minimum manpower numbers.
"It's no surprise to the Buffalo PBA that we're short manpower," Davidson said of my findings. "You're seeing officers that are run ragged," he added.
Davidson tells me that since the start of 2025, around 67 officers have retired and the city has hired just four officers to replace them. More police employees are expected to retire in June and December 2027.
"I think we were told by this mayor's office definitively they were going to hire more officers this year. That's not going to happen," Davidson said.
He welcomed the BPD's plans to pull from Erie County's list of potential new recruits in the meantime.
"I applaud any effort to hire officers as we need them," Davidson said.
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