A few dozen San Francisco police and firefighters are commuting from hundreds or thousands of miles away, taking flights from as far away as Texas or the East Coast, raising questions about their commitment to San Francisco and their ability to serve the city in case of an emergency.
City records show that at least 30 police department employees live outside of California, including 16 sworn officers. The same number of sworn firefighters, 16, live outside of the state.
Technically, the fire and police departments have no residency requirement mandating employees live within the city or region. The San Francisco Fire Department’s union contract, however, has an “emergency recall” clause requiring employees to “respond” within four hours. But the meaning of this clause is up for interpretation.
“It’s nothing enforceable,” said a longtime firefighter who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “I do think it’s ridiculous, people living out of state and that far away.”
The vast majority of the staff at both the police and fire departments do still live in the Bay Area: More than 95 percent of police department employees, and about 85 percent of the fire department.
Only about 21.5 percent of sworn police live in San Francisco, according to the Department of Human Resources’ data — the lowest rate of any city department. In fact, about 25 percent of San Francisco’s police brass lives in San Mateo County, more than in San Francisco itself.
Retired police sergeant Dean Marcic referred to colleagues who live out of state as “super-commuters” — employees who return to San Francisco every few weeks for work but have their home, spouses and children elsewhere.
A flight to San Francisco from Honolulu, where one firefighter lives, takes five hours. Another firefighter lives in Waxhaw, North Carolina, nearly an hour outside of Charlotte. Excluding the time to get to the Charlotte airport, the flight time to San Francisco is more than five hours.
Still another lives in College Grove, Tennessee; a flight from the nearest airport, in Nashville, to San Francisco is also nearly five hours long.
The motivation for living outside the city can range: Better schools and weather, lower cost of living, proximity to family. Another reason, said retired police sergeant Carl Tennenbaum, may be that police officers want to avoid running into people they once arrested on their days off.
“Cops don’t wanna live in the city, because they don’t want some bad guy they arrested to come looking for them,” he said. “I ran into people who I arrested when I was off duty, and it was never a problem because I wasn’t a jerk.”
The fire department said that the four-hour response requirement actually only mandates that employees answer a call within four hours.
“The SFFD staff has four hours to return a call confirming receipt of a recall notification, and two days to respond back to the city,” said Captain Jonathan Baxter in an email.
Dozens of sworn police officers and firefighters live outside California
ID
NV
CO
HI
CA
TN
NC
AZ
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In the police, officers, lieutenants,
sergeants, and even a commander
live out of state.
Dozens of sworn police officers
and firefighters live outside CA
ID
NV
CO
HI
CA
TN
NC
AZ
AL
TX
In the police, officers,
lieutenants, sergeants,
and even a commander live out of state.
Map by Will Jarrett. Data from the Department of Human Resources.
Super-commuters at the San Francisco Police Department
The police department has no such requirements, and at least 30 employees of the SFPD live outside of California. Of those 30, some 16 are sworn officers living in other states, such as Idaho, Texas, and Alabama, including at least one commander, who can earn between $340,000 and $380,000 in salary. Others live in the far reaches of the state, as far as San Diego, Orange, and Los Angeles counties.
How often these employees commute to San Francisco is unclear.
“My understanding is that there used to be a policy requiring you to live in San Francisco to be hired, which was extended to the nine Bay Area counties as hiring became more difficult,” wrote police union spokesperson Dustin Saggau in an email. “Now, there is no requirement for residency/proximity, because of the extreme hiring challenges.”
Many cities around the country have done away with strict residency requirements, and large numbers of employees commute from out of town.
The Police Department has, for several years, claimed severe staffing shortages, and recruitment efforts have fallen short of late. The SFPD had 1514 sworn officers in March, according to data from the department — 358 fewer than it had in 2017, when the ranks began to decline.
A resolution sponsored by five city supervisors last month stated that the department hired no more than 21 new officers per year in the last two years, and that 478 of 1,537 — nearly a third — of sworn SFPD officers are currently eligible for retirement.
Disaster response, community policing in question
All city employees are considered “disaster service workers” and may be asked to respond in emergency situations, including natural disasters and human-caused emergencies that result in disaster or “extreme peril.” Thousands of city employees were called on to serve the city during the Covid-19 pandemic and after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
Living in distant counties of the state or across state lines can also impact the culture of the departments.
The residence of San Francisco emergency workers by California county. Data from the Department of Human Resources. Map by Will Jarrett. Basemap from Mapbox.
“Socially, even, it’s a lot better to hire Bay Area people,” said the longtime firefighter, referencing Trump supporters from other parts of California and remembering dramatic hearings over officers refusing to heed Covid-19 vaccine requirements. “A small number live out of state, but we do have too many who live two and three hours away, which is too far.”
That SFPD members can live hours away or across state lines casts doubt on the department’s purported commitment to “community policing” — the philosophy that collaboration with a community can create better policing outcomes. The Police Department’s approach to community policing “requires that the police have an understanding of the traditions, culture and history of the neighborhoods in which they serve.”
Retired police veteran Tennenbaum said he felt a divide between commuter colleagues and those who grew up in and lived in the city.
“I always got the sense that a lot of the people who were commuting from the suburbs, they weren’t that invested in the outcomes of what their policing was doing,” Tennenbaum said. He called it “common sense” that a police officer living in Novato, which is 70 percent white, and working in Bayview Hunters Point would be “disconnected” from that community.
Eighty-eight sworn police officers live in Novato, about 45 minutes away.
Police Commissioner Jesus Gabriel Yáñez was surprised to learn that police all the way up to the commander level have permanent addresses outside of California. Having officers who grew up in the city and have “lifetime experience” managing different street dynamics in San Francisco’s distinct communities, he said, is “invaluable.”
“It just boggles the mind to think that anybody can work from out of state,” Yáñez said. “I think we need to, at some point, have a sunset on that recruitment strategy.”
“I wouldn’t do it, myself,” said Marcic, the retired police sergeant, who works part-time for the SFPD. But, he said, “everybody’s got their own reasoning behind it.”
The median income for SFFD is $210,000 – the highest of any City Department – yet they have the lowest residency percentage. Pay is not the issue.
Okay, so this IMMEDIATELY needs to stop, if you live more than four hour driving distance, I DO NOT WANT YOU WORKING HERE. How about we just not hire?
I don’t blame them. Who can afford to live here? I am a nurse, I make 50k full-time. That’s not enough money to live here.
This is also practiced (residing outside the state) by fire fighters in Southern California. One big reason is their retirement won’t be taxed by California.
NONE of Emeryville’s police officers or firefighters live in Emeryville. Not one.
As one of those City disaster workers (albeit a volunteer): most of our Fire Department cannot afford to live here. When the Big One hits, we will have maybe 30 per cent of our FD in the city and able to respond, if we’re lucky (that’s the ones currently on duty at any time, assuming a few injuries or folks who are unavailable, and a few who do live here off duty). The rest will be on the wrong side of a bridge or tunnel. The situation gets worse when we look at medical personnel.
And it isn’t just the FD. Our 911 dispatch is badly understaffed, and one of the many reasons is that dispatchers can’t afford to live in town. The newer emergency services building had problems getting parking for its dispatchers because City employees are supposed to commute by transit – never mind that a 911 dispatcher has to be on time and “on time” may be midnight or 6 AM when transit isn’t running, and from three counties away.
(https://www.sfexaminer.com/archives/city-stalls-request-for-more-parking-for-911-dispatchers-citing-transit-first-policy/article_45300e5e-a85f-509d-be6b-132a162dadfd.html for more on the dispatcher parking lot issue)
We need to subsidize housing in the City for emergency workers, if we want them to be here in an emergency. We need to raise salaries and increase other benefits if we want to keep them here. People are talking about doing this for teachers, but honestly, we need the nurses and firefighters even more.
Agreed
It’s simply put the hiring practices. I know plenty of veterans or individuals from other government agencies that literally can’t get hired by SFPD. You can hold a top secret clearance and not get a job for SFPD because you will fail their background check processes for “reasons”. Inquire into what the “reasons” were and you’ll get blocked out anyway with little to no information gained in return. Id also note I regularly work with SFPD and other local departments and those in the know don’t deny the game is rigged at every level. It’s similar throughout much of the bay area, hard to employ people invested in their communities when the local institutions themselves are keeping invested locals out. Imagine a department filled with individuals who believe in the concept of protecting and serving their community instead of being like the officers I know who literally wait in their car until the problem is over.
I can see living in San Mateo county (quiet and safe) or Novato or Pleasanton (more affordable) but how in the heck can you live in freaking Hawaii? Wouldn’t you be nervous about not being able to get back to duty in time!
Where people live and what they do in personal off-work time is no one’s business much less an employer “dictating” where to live. You already complain about salaries but you’re willing to subsidize their housing? Where would THAT money come from?
This is ridiculous. Contracts for police and firemen should be renegotiated, so that no employee is more than one hour away.
I don’t see how you can legally force somebody to live less than 1 hour away, especially if they can’t afford the high prices for housing in the Bay Area. When possible solution is for the city to build workforce housing for essential employees like police, firefighters, teachers and nurses. That idea was floated a few years ago but it went nowhere.
What will happen when the earthquake hits? What happened to community fire and police services? This is neither practical nor effective. We need to clean up public policy and accountability to the citizens of San Francisco.
Back in the 90’s there was another report about a fireman living in Colorado due to their 24 on 48 off schedules. I lived on Eddy and Webster for 12 years and a retired firefighter lived on our block. Every holiday there would be a fire alarm in his apt about 11:45pm and multiple fire dept resources would respond and hob nob in the street in front of his apt until after midnight to maximize their “holiday / emergency vehicle/ emergency response pay benefits and then I assume would head on home to the family in time for XMAS or Thanksgiving morning after jacking their compensation for that day through the roof. What a scam.
Nate, your statement is completely incorrect. There is no added. Pay for responding on a holiday (or any response for that matter).
That’s great reporting! I have to do public sevice for 10 years to get my excessive graduate loans forgiven and thought I might try out for the SFFD. Now I really want tp.
I was a NERT (Neighborhood Response Emergency Training) member for decades. The firefighters who trained us said, when the big earthquake comes, you’re on your own, as most firefighters & cops do not live in SF, & won’t be able to get there if bridges & tunnels are damaged. NERT is an amazing program, the firefighters were great teachers, check it out.
This is my concern too. When we really need everyone of these employees to be here they will be in in another state? I also agree they have no concern about our neighborhoods, and bet they hate the city while earning 6-figures here
These officers and fire fighters are likely also making a lot more money working here.
Does San Francisco pay more than, say, a small town in North Carolina?
I think that maybe the SFPD/FD needs to mimic what private companies now do with WFH. If you live out of state, you make an adjusted salary commiserate with cost of living in those places.
And I sure as heck hope we aren’t paying for their commute expenses. Flying to Hawaii s expensive.
No, their salary pays for their commute. YOU don’t pay anything except the taxes that pay their salary, and even then your contribution wouldn’t account for more than a few cents of their check. What’s more, once you pay your taxes on *insert item here*, it’s no longer YOUR money, and therefore really none of your concern how they spend it. You don’t see us coming to your house and telling you how to spend your paycheck. Maybe if houses weren’t so expensive, and the schools were better, maybe more of us would live in the city.
Except, they are all public employees, who are sworn and entrusted to do their job within local entities, in a timely manner. Meaning, all should be living within 1 hour of San Francisco. Unless the Lear jet or the business-class seats are faster. Which are all paid by taxpayers of San Francisco.
Obviously this is a nuanced conversation but want to highlight some points as a firefighter myself. 1. No matter where police/firefighters live, they meet the same work requirements (off duty training, on duty hours plus forced overtime). In a catastrophic incident, those who are on duty, will have to do their best. There’s not much backup equipment and fire apparatus if off duty firefighters were to come in anyway.
2. Mentally, it’s hard to disassociate from the place you work in a stressful job such as fire/police. I personally noticed I’m in a heightened, more anxious state when I’m in my district during off duty hours. Getting away helps mentally recharge and prevent burnout, which is a major problem. Not to mention the financial burden of trying to raise a family.
3. There’s a shortage of firefighters/ police officers. The city has enough problems. They don’t need to exacerbate this one. Focus on having quality service on duty instead of worrying about where people live off the clock.
They just need to hire more and up the salary to make it affordable to live in or near SF.
They don’t want to hire, I know that from several who applied. Refused for no known reason.
I think they want the overtime pay.
The city and state taxes we pay, obviously go out of city and state.
Ridiculous what’s happening.
Needs to be overhauled.
If you live out of state, you make an adjusted salary commiserate with cost of living in those places.
Can of worms not to mention illegal.
No, there is no adjusted salary for City employees based on were they live. That doesn’t exist.
Last time I checked public records, San Francisco County’s top 20 paid employees were dominated by the police and the firefighters. Although, 2 RN’s made the list at above 350k. Key factors are overtime and union representation.
Yeah I was reading about nursing salaries. They can make bank especially someone like a nurse anesthetist
Yep.
Firefighters cannot afford to live in the Bay Area (especially in the city) . If they could, most would. These people living out of state can’t afford a 1500 sq ft house around here, and don’t feel like raising a family in a 800 sq ft apartment. Maybe the salaries should be higher…
Either that or build workforce housing for essential workers like police officers, firefighters, teachers and nurses. This idea was proposed a few years ago but unfortunately went nowhere
You hit the nail right on the head