Harlan Kirgan
Eunice Police Chief Randy Fontenot sees hope in Tuesday’s election results that voters may be inclined to help his department with its pay issue.
“Hopefully, we can work with the city council now and see what we can do about getting our pay up to par with the rest of Acadiana so that we can be competitive in attracting good qualified officers and retain those that we have,” he said Wednesday morning.
Fontenot noted that he won re-election with 78 percent of the vote and Mayor Scott Fontenot earned 82 percent of the vote.
“I think with the margins that Scott and I won by that it shows we have the support of the community and I’m hoping for community support,” he said.
The police chief said he hears from people that the $9.75 a hour starting pay for police officers needs to be raised.
Other departments in Acadiana pay officers from $35,000 to $45,000 a year, he said.
The state pays certified police officers a $6,000 a year supplement.
On his re-election, Fontenot said, “I’m obviously very excited about it.”
He added, “I think those results tell me people are satisfied with the job that I’ve been doing. So, I’m going to continue to do that job and continue to try to do even better.”
Fontenot said one of his goals in the past four years about community policing will continue in his second term. Achieving more police contact with community has been hampered by staffing shortages, he said.