Santa Cruz Police Offer $2,000 Bonus in New Referral Program

The Santa Cruz Police Department has taken a new approach to recruiting officers. The “first of its kind” hiring program is turning to citizens for help.

As part of a method to bring new officers to the area, local can receive a $2,000 for recruiting certified officers for the force.

This is what they call “crowd sourced recruiting.” It is a way to encourage people to seek out qualified officers who are looking to re-locate.

Santa Cruz-local, Spencer Petty, said he already knew of people that he could recommend. “I actually know of two people right now who are looking down south to try to be in the police academy, or graduating from a police academy, and looking to be somewhere in the Bay Area,” said Petty.

The department has offered a $20,000 signing bonus for new hires, but they said they wanted to implement, what they believe with be, a more effective method of recruiting.

Santa Cruz Police Department, Chief of Police, Andrew Mills, said, “Reality is, it’s hard to get our word out to every nook and corner of society. I mean, there are so many things competing for people’s attention. So a lot of times, money motivates people to pay attention.”

Mills said they are looking for candidates who have had past experience in the field and are committed to caring for the community.

Those who help to recruit new members will receive their first $1,000 after the candidate is sworn in and the second $1,000 after his or her first six months have been completed.