U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, 2000 October 2002, NCJ 194066 --------------------------------------------------------------- This file is text only without graphics and many of the tables. A Zip archive of the tables in this report in spreadsheet format (.wk1) and the full report including tables and graphics in .pdf format are available from: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/csllea00.htm This report is one in a series. More recent editions may be available. To view a list of all in the series go to the publications page at: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pubalph2.htm#csllea --------------------------------------------------------------- By Brian A. Reaves, Ph.D. and Matthew J. Hickman BJS Statisticians ------------------------------------------- Highlights From 1992 to 2000, the number of full-time sworn personnel employed by State and local law enforcement agencies increased by about 100,000, or 16% * As of June 2000, nearly 18,000 State and local agencies employed the equivalent of at least 1 full-time sworn officer with general arrest powers. These agencies had more than 1 million full-time employees, including 708,022 sworn personnel. * The number of full-time State and local sworn personnel nationwide in June 2000 was about 44,000, or 7%, more than in 1996, and about 100,000, or 16%, more than in 1992. * In 2000, State and local agencies employed more than 425,000 uniformed officers whose regularly assigned duties included responding to calls for service. More than 131,000 sworn personnel were designated as community policing officers. * About 15% of sworn personnel primarily handled criminal investigations. About 8% primarily performed jail-related duties, and 3% handled court-related duties such as providing court security or serving civil process. * Seventy-seven agencies employed 1,000 or more sworn personnel. This included 47 local police departments, 17 State police or highway patrol agencies, 12 sheriffs' offices, and 1 special jurisdiction police agency. * The largest agency, the New York City Police Department, had 40,435 full-time sworn personnel as of June 2000. The largest sheriff's office, in Los Angeles County, had 8,468 officers, and the largest State agency, the California Highway Patrol, 6,678. --------------------------------------------------- As of June 2000, State and local governments in the United States operated 17,784 full-time law enforcement agencies -- those that employed at least one full-time sworn officer with general arrest powers or the equivalent in part-time officers. The total included 12,666 general purpose local police departments, 3,070 sheriffs' offices, the 49 primary State law enforcement agencies, 1,376 State and local agencies with a special geographic jurisdiction or special enforcement responsibilities, and 623 county constable offices in Texas. Overall, these State and local law enforcement agencies employed 1,019,496 persons on a full-time basis. This total included 708,022 full-time sworn personnel (69%) and 311,474 nonsworn (or civilian) personnel (31%). These agencies also had about 99,000 part-time employees, including nearly 43,000 part-time sworn personnel. These findings resulted from the 2000 Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, sponsored by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) and the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS). The BJS Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies To ensure an accurate sampling frame for its Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS) survey, BJS periodically sponsors a census of State and local law enforcement agencies. The 2000 census included State and local agencies employing the equivalent of least one full-time officer with general arrest powers. This report summarizes the findings of the census, which was co-sponsored by COPS. As in 1992 and 1996, the 2000 census collected data on the number of sworn and nonsworn personnel, including both full-time and part-time employees. Data were collected from agencies that employed at least one sworn officer or the part-time equivalent at the time of the census. The reference period for all data is the pay period that included June 30, 2000. State and local law enforcement agencies By type of agency, general purpose local police departments were the largest employer with 565,915 full-time employees as of June 2000. Of this total, 440,920, or 78%, were sworn personnel with general arrest powers. Sheriffs' offices accounted for 293,823 full-time employees, of which 164,711 (56%) were sworn officers. The 49 primary State law enforcement agencies operating in each State except Hawaii employed 87,028 persons full time. Of these employees, 56,348, or 65%, were full-time sworn personnel. Agencies with a special geographic jurisdiction or special enforcement responsibilities employed 43,413 full-time sworn personnel and had 69,650 full-time employees overall. (See table 14 for types of special jurisdictions). From June 1996 to 2000, the number of full-time State and local law enforcement employees in the United States increased about 97,500, or 10.6%. The number of full-time sworn personnel was up about 44,500, an increase of 6.7%. Civilian employment rose 53,000, or 20.5%. In 2000 full-time employment was up 173,000, or 20.4%, compared to 1992. This included about 100,000, or 16.4%, more sworn personnel, and 73,000, or 30.7%, more civilians. In June 2000 there were 362 full-time State and local law enforcement employees per 100,000 residents nationwide, an increase of 5.9% from 1996, and 9.6% more than in 1992. This included 252 sworn personnel per 100,000 residents, an increase of 2.4% from 1996 levels, and 6.3% from 1992. The ratio of nonsworn personnel per 100,000 residents increased 19.4% from 1992 to 2000, including a 15.1% rise from 1996 to 2000. State and local sworn personnel Fifty-nine percent of full-time State and local sworn employees were assigned to patrol duty on a regular basis. About in 1 in 7 sworn personnel were assigned to investigative duties. Approximately 1 in 11 primarily performed duties related to jail (5.4%) or court (3.7%) operations. Duties of other State and local law enforcement officers, but not broken down here, included administration, training, and technical support. Size of agencies As of June 2000, of the 17,784 State and local law enforcement agencies operating, 1,032, or 6%, employed 100 or more full-time sworn personnel. This included 77 agencies with 1,000 or more officers. The majority of agencies employed fewer than 10 full-time officers (52%), and nearly a third, about 5,600 in all, employed fewer than 5 (31%). These smaller agencies included 1,907, 11% of agencies overall, with just 1 full-time officer and 231, 1% of all agencies, with only part-time officers. Although State and local agencies with 100 or more full-time sworn officers accounted for just 6% of all agencies, they employed 63% of all State and local full-time sworn personnel. The 77 agencies with 1,000 or more officers accounted for 220,512, or 31.1%, of all full-time sworn personnel. The 77 largest agencies rarely used part-time sworn officers, accounting for just 0.3% of all such personnel nationwide. Nearly half (47%) of part-time sworn personnel were employed by agencies with fewer than 10 full-time officers, and about two-thirds (68%) worked for agencies with fewer than 25 full-time officers. State-by-State comparisons Texas (1,800) had the most full-time State and local law enforcement agencies. The total included 623 county constable offices (see box on page 14). Pennsylvania (1,166) had the next highest number of agencies, followed by Illinois (886) and Ohio (845). California had the most full-time State and local law enforcement employees, about 116,000. Other States with 50,000 or more employees included New York (94,863), Texas (80,535), Florida (68,165), and Illinois (52,769). States with fewer than 2,000 employees included Vermont (1,459) and North Dakota (1,755). Nationwide, there were 362 full-time sworn personnel per 100,000 residents. The District of Columbia (859), Louisiana (527), and New York (500) had the most. West Virginia (229), Kentucky (237), and Vermont (240) had the least. California (73,762) had the most full-time sworn personnel employed by State and local agencies, followed closely by New York (72,853). Next were Texas (51,478), Illinois (39,847), and Florida (39,452). Vermont (1,034) had the fewest officers. After the District of Columbia (693), the ratio of full-time sworn personnel per 100,000 residents was highest in Louisiana (415). The next highest ratios were in New York (384), New Jersey (345), and Illinois (321). The lowest ratios were in Vermont (170) and West Virginia (174). Nation-wide, the ratio was 252 per 100,000. The per capita ratio of uniformed officers whose regular duties included responding to calls for service were highest in the District of Columbia (357 per 100,000 residents), New York (240), and Wyoming (200). It was lowest in Oregon (104) and Washington (108). The overall ratio for the Nation was 151 per 100,000. Local police departments As of June 2000, there were 12,666 general purpose local police departments operating in the United States. Municipal governments operated the vast majority of these agencies. The remainder were county, tribal, or regional (multi-jurisdictional) police. As of June 2000, full-time employment by local police departments was up about 44,000, or 8.4%, compared to June 1996. The number of full-time sworn personnel increased about 30,000, or 7.3%. The number of civilian employees in local police departments rose about 14,000, or 12.6%. In 2000, the number of full-time local police employees was up by about 87,000, or 18.2%, compared to 1992. This included about 66,000, or 17.7% more sworn personnel and about 21,000, or 20.1%, more civilian personnel. Size of local police departments A total of 567, or 4.5%, of local police departments employed 100 or more full-time sworn personnel. Included in these larger agencies were 47 with 1,000 or more officers. In contrast, 56.2% of departments employed fewer than 10 full-time officers. Included among these smaller agencies were 1,366 (10.8%) that employed only 1 full-time officer, and 199 (1.6%) that relied solely on part-time officers. Agencies with fewer than 10 full-time officers employed about 6% of all full-time local police officers. About three-fifths (61%) of all full-time local police officers worked in an agency with 100 or more officers, and nearly half (48%) worked for an agency with at least 250 officers. The 47 departments with 1,000 or more officers employed 34.2 % of all full-time local police officers. These agencies employed just 0.3% of all part-time sworn personnel, but 27% of part-time civilian personnel. Functions of local police officers About 64% of full-time sworn local police personnel primarily performed patrol duties, while 16% primarily handled criminal investigations. This Included personnel in other functional areas such as administration, training, and technical support with those responding to calls and investigating crimes. Nearly all local police officers were working in the area of law enforcement operations. Less than 2% had regularly assigned court-related (0.7%) or jail-related (0.6%) duties. The largest local police departments As of June 2000 the New York City Police Department (NYPD) was the Nation's largest local police department -- and its largest law enforcement agency of any kind -- with 53,029 full-time employees, including 40,435 sworn officers. Twenty-three NYPD officers were killed in the line of duty as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Other cities with police forces of more than 5,000 full-time officers included Chicago (13,466), Los Angeles (9,341), Philadelphia (7,024), and Houston (5,343). In 2000 about 1 in 11 full-time local police officers nationwide worked for the NYPD, and about 1 in 6 worked for one of the five largest forces. The largest county police departments in the U.S. included the Nassau County (NY)Police with 3,038 full-time officers, the Miami-Dade (FL) Police (3,008), and the Suffolk County (NY) Police (2,564). From June 1996 to 2000, the NYPD reported the largest change in number of officers of any State or local police department. During this period, the Nation's largest police force expanded by 3,622 officers. By percent change, the departments with the largest increases were those serving Memphis (34.1%), Las Vegas (27.8%), New Orleans (24.0%), Austin (20.9%), and Newark (20.0%). Decreases in force size occurred in Pittsburgh (10.2%), Honolulu (9.5%), St. Louis (8.7%), Suffolk County (6.6%), and Milwaukee (5.1%). (See the BJS Special Report, Police Departments in Large Cities, 1990-2000, NCJ 175703 for more information on the Nation's largest municipal police agencies.) State-by-State comparisons As of June 2000 Pennsylvania had the most full-time general purpose local police departments (1,015). Next were Texas (737), Illinois (729), and Ohio (712). Other States with more than 400 local police departments included New Jersey (484), Michigan (450), Missouri (449), and Wisconsin (417). Excluding the District of Columbia, Hawaii (4) had the least local police departments, followed by Nevada (28) and Delaware (33). Local police departments in the State of New York had 74,737 full-time employees, more than in any other State. California was second with 52,541. Other States with more than 25,000 full-time local police employees were Texas (40,321), Illinois (34,382), Florida (29,922), and New Jersey (25,114). Four States had fewer than 1,000 full-time local police employees: Vermont (735), North Dakota (844), Wyoming (907), and Montana (983). After the District of Columbia (781), New York ranked highest among the States in terms of local police employees per 100,000 residents, with 394. Other States with 250 or more local police employees per 100,000 residents included New Jersey (298), Illinois (277), Hawaii (276), Massachusetts (263), and Rhode Island (262). New York (58,588) was the only State with more than 50,000 full-time local police officers. California ranked second with 37,674 officers. The other States with more than 15,000 full-time local police officers were Texas (30,525), Illinois (27,452), New Jersey (21,046), Florida (21,035), Pennsylvania (18,913), and Ohio (16,956). In terms of full-time police officers per 100,000 residents, New York (309) was second only to the District of Columbia (631). Other States with 200 or more local police officers per 100,000 residents included New Jersey (250), Illinois (221), Massachusetts (218), Hawaii (215), and Rhode Island (205). Sheriffs' offices In June 2000 sheriffs' offices had about 36,000 more full-time employees than in 1996, an increase of 14.0%. This included an increase of about 12,000, or 7.7%, in sworn personnel, and an increase of about 24,000, or 23.2%, in nonsworn employees. In 2000 sheriffs' offices had 68,000, or 30.4%, more full-time employees, compared to 1992. Civilian employment rose by about 40,000, or 45.4% during this time, while the number of sworn personnel increased by approximately 28,000, or 23.2%. These increases, which are larger than those for local police, were influenced to some extent by the fact that about 4 in 5 sheriffs' departments are responsible for jail operations. The Nation's jail inmate population in June 2000 was 20% larger than in June 1996, and 40% larger than in June 1992. (See the BJS Bulletin, Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2000, NCJ 185989). Size of sheriffs' offices As of June 2000, of the 3,070 full-time sheriffs' offices operating nationwide, 323, or 10.5%, employed at least 100 full-time sworn personnel. This included 12 agencies with 1,000 or more full-time sworn personnel. About a third (32.5%) of sheriffs' offices employed fewer than 10 full-time sworn personnel, and 25 agencies (0.8%) had just 1 full-time officer. The 12 sheriffs' offices employing 1,000 or more sworn personnel accounted for about a sixth of full-time sheriffs' employees. About 62% of all full-time sheriffs' employees worked for an agency with 100 or more employees, including 64% of sworn personnel. Functions of sheriffs' deputies Nearly all sheriffs' offices are responsible for responding to citizen calls for service. As of June 2000, 40% of sheriffs' deputies were regularly assigned to patrol duty. Another 12% were assigned to investigative duties. In addition to handling calls for service, about four-fifths of sheriffs' offices operate 1 or more jails. Nearly all have court-related responsibilities such as the serving of process and court security. In 2000, 22% of full-time sheriffs' deputies were assigned to jail-related duties, while 13% primarily performed court- related duties. In this latter category, about two-thirds of officers were assigned to court security, and a third to process serving. The largest sheriffs' offices As of June 2000 the largest sheriff's office in the Nation, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, employed 8,438 full-time sworn personnel. Twenty-seven percent of that agency's full-time sworn personnel were assigned to patrol, and 8% to criminal investigations. Nearly half were assigned to jail operations (27%) or court security (18%). The second largest sheriff's office, with 5,309 full-time sworn personnel, was the Cook County (IL) Sheriff's Office. Most of the officers in that agency were assigned to duties related to jail or court operations. Overall, 8 of the 25 largest sheriffs' offices, including 6 of the 10 largest, were in California. All of these agencies reported that more than a fourth of their deputies had regular patrol assignments. All of them also had a significant percentage of sworn personnel assigned to jail-related duties. Another 5 of the 25 largest sheriffs' offices were in Florida. All of these agencies had at least a third of their deputies assigned to patrol operations; however, only the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office also operated a jail. Of the three major categories of law enforcement, jail operations, and court operations, 13 of the 25 largest sheriffs' departments had the largest number of sworn personnel assigned to law enforcement, and 12 had the largest number assigned to jail duties. State-by-State comparisons As of June 2000, 3,070 sheriffs' offices were operating full time. Texas (254) had the most. Except for a few who are appointed, sheriffs are elected officials. California (45,706), Florida (33,303), and Texas (23,621) had the most full-time sheriffs' employees. Other States with 10,000 or more full-time sheriffs' employees included Illinois (13,501), Georgia (12,990), Louisiana (12,745), North Carolina (10,457), New York (10,208), and Ohio (10,199). Louisiana had the most sheriffs' employees per capita with 285 per 100,000 residents. Other States with more than 150 per 100,000 included Florida (208), Wyoming (196), Idaho (171), Montana (162), and Georgia (159). Nationwide, there were 104 full-time sheriffs' office employees per 100,000 residents. Sheriffs' offices that had the most full-time sworn personnel; California (25,361), Florida (14,770), Texas (11,133), and Louisiana (10,329). Other States with 5,000 or more full-time sheriff's deputies included Illinois (9,073), Georgia (7,703), Virginia (7,382), North Carolina (6,140), New York (6,018), and Ohio (5,366). Sheriffs' offices employed 59 full-time sworn personnel per 100,000 residents nationwide. States that had the highest ratio per 100,000 residents: Louisiana (231), Wyoming (117), and Virginia (104). As of June 2000, sheriffs' offices nationwide had nearly 66,000 full-time officers assigned to respond to calls for service. States with the most were California (9,033), Florida (8,294), and Texas (4,095). Sheriffs' offices employed 23 such personnel per 100,000 residents nationwide. The highest ratios were in Wyoming (61), Florida (52), Louisiana (52), and Montana (51). Primary State law enforcement agencies In June 2000, the 49 primary State law enforcement agencies had 87,028 full-time employees. This was about 3,300, or 3.9%, more than in 1996. There were 56,348 full-time sworn personnel in 2000. This was about 1,800, or 3.2%, more than in 1996. Civilian employment rose by approximately 1,500, or 5.2%, during this period. In 2000, overall employment was up by about 8,500, or 10.8%, compared to 1992. This included increases of about 5,100, or 19.9%, in nonsworn employees, and of about 3,400, or 6.4%, in sworn personnel. In 2000, 69% of the full-time sworn personnel in State law enforcement agencies were patrol officers and 11% were investigators. Less than 1% were assigned to court-related duties. Seventeen agencies employed 1,000 or more full- time sworn officers, and 34 employed at least 500 such officers. The largest, the California Highway Patrol, had 9,706 full-time employees including 6,678 full-time sworn personnel. The next largest were the Texas Department of Public Safety (7,025 and 3,119) and the Pennsylvania State Police (5,694 and 4,152). The smallest agencies in terms of sworn personnel were the North Dakota Highway Patrol (126), the Wyoming Highway Patrol (148), and the South Dakota Highway Patrol (153). Special jurisdiction agencies In June 2000, nearly 1,400 State and local law enforcement agencies with special geographic jurisdictions or special enforcement responsibilities were operating in the United States. These agencies had 43,413 full-time sworn personnel. About two-thirds (67%) of full-time sworn personnel primarily handled patrol duties, while 16% were criminal investigators. Approximately 1% were responsible for court-related duties. More than 11,000 full-time police officers serving public 4-year and 2-year colleges and universities accounted for more than a fourth of all sworn personnel serving special jurisdictions. Another 3,200 were police officers for public school districts. Agencies serving State capitols and other government buildings employed about 1,100 sworn personnel. Agencies enforcing laws related to fish and wildlife conservation employed 7,935 full-time officers, and those responsible for parks and recreation areas about 3,200. Agencies responsible for mass transit systems employed about 2,600 sworn personnel officers, and those serving airports, nearly 2,500. Agencies serving multiple types of transportation facilities employed about 1,700 officers, with the Port Authority of New York-New Jersey Police (1,238), the largest of these forces. The Port Authority Police are responsible for policing the facilities owned and operated by the Port Authority, including the LaGuardia, Kennedy, and Newark Airports, the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels, the George Washington and Staten Island Bridges, the PATH train system, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, and the Port Newark and Port Elizabeth Marine Terminals. At the time of the 2000 census, the World Trade Center was also under Port Authority Police jurisdiction. Thirty-seven Port Authority Police officers were killed in the line of duty as a result of the World Trade Center attacks of September 11, 2001. Other categories of special jurisdiction agencies that accounted for 500 or more full-time sworn personnel included county and city investigative agencies (1,838), State alcohol enforcement agencies (1,287), medical facility police (978), port facility police (940), State investigation bureaus (692), and public housing police (673). State-by State comparisons Texas (185) and California (117) had the most State and local agencies serving special jurisdictions (table 16). Other States with 50 or more agencies included Pennsylvania (85), New York (66), and Illinois (54). About 40% of the nearly 70,000 full-time State and local law enforcement employees serving special jurisdictions were in California (7,963), Texas (6,488), New York (4,970), Pennsylvania (4,469), or New Jersey (4,385). Other States with 2,500 or more employees included Maryland (3,250), Ohio (3,026), Florida (2,802), and Georgia (2,589). Vermont (68) and New Hampshire (98) were the only States with fewer than 100 such employees. New York (4,135), Texas (4,071), and California (3,949) had the most full-time sworn personnel serving special jurisdictions. Eight other States had 1,000 or more: Maryland (2,255), New Jersey (2,247), Florida (1,989), Pennsylvania (1,880), Georgia (1,692). Virginia (1,385), Ohio (1,309), and Illinois (1,233). States with fewer than 100 included Vermont (55), New Hampshire (76), and Oregon (92). The District of Columbia (61) had the most sworn personnel serving special jurisdictions per 100,000 residents. Maryland (43) and Alaska (35)had the next highest ratios. ------------------------------------------- Texas constable offices Of the approximately 760 county constable offices in Texas, 623 operated on a full-time basis and employed sworn personnel with general arrest powers as of June 2000. Texas constables are elected officials who are responsible for providing services for the justice, county, and district courts. Nearly three-fifths of the sworn personnel employed by constable offices primarily performed court-related duties. This included 37% who served process, and 20% assigned to provide court security. In addition to their court services responsibilities, 47% of constable offices had sworn personnel regularly assigned to respond to citizen calls for service. Overall, about 1 in 3 officers primarily performed patrol duties, and 1 in 10 handled criminal investigations. ----------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------- Data from the 2000 Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies (ICPSR 2260) can be obtained from the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data at the University of Michigan, 1-800-999-0960. The archive, as well as the report and other criminal justice information, can be found through or at the BJS Internet Web site: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/ ------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------ The Bureau of Justice Statistics is the statistical agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. Lawrence A. Greenfeld is acting director.BJS Bulletins present the first release of findings from permanent data collection programs such as the Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies. Brian A. Reaves, Ph.D., and Matthew J. Hickman wrote this report. Tina Dorsey edited the report. Jayne Robinson administered final report production. The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) provided partial funding for the 2000 Census. Debra Cohen and Matthew Scheider assisted with questionnaire development. More information on COPS can be obtained at their website Data were collected and processed by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, with assistance from BJS. Census Bureau staff, under the supervision of Latrice Brogsdale-Davis and Charlene Sebold, included Theresa Reitz, Martha Greene, Patricia Torreyson, Bill Bryner, and Paula Kinard. August 2002, NCJ 194066 -------------------------------------------- End of file 08/08/ih