An Allegheny County lawmaker has put into motion a proposal that would require all municipalities in the state — no matter the size or staffing — to provide health, disability and survivor benefits to their part-time police officers.

Last week, State Rep. Dan Miller, a Democrat, introduced House Bill 1765 that at first glance appears to be a nod of respect to those who protect and serve.

At the same time, though, it could be something that puts them out of a job by fueling a fiscal collapse for cash-strapped communities struggling to keep streets plowed and paved, let alone protected.

Locally, places like Coaldale and Lansford are already having a hard time with police protection.

Late last year, Coaldale disbanded its police department after losing officers to other jobs or retirement.

Since then, it has forged an agreement with neighboring Tamaqua to provide three full-time officers at a cost of $366,000 in the first year.

Borough officials indicated earlier this year that even purchasing services from its neighbor wouldn’t come without a tax increase, which was estimated at 2 mills in the next borough budget.

For now, state police are covering the borough. But they don’t handle the minor complaints like barking dogs or illegally parked vehicles.

Last month, borough officials hoped to have police dedicated to cover Coaldale sometime this month.

In neighboring Lansford, police coverage has been a hot topic at council gatherings.

At a recent meeting, residents were told the borough has a police budget of $864,000 and that a full-time officer costs taxpayers $142,000 a year including benefits, insurance and salary.

The borough has sought applications for police officers but has met with little success. Its last police chief departed in March of this year.

Officials there said the borough would like to hire at least one police officer and a chief before the end of the year.

This year, the borough budgeted $83,500 for a chief’s salary, $81,500 for a sergeant’s salary and $230 for patrolmen’s salaries. Officials estimated health care for a new chief would cost $41,000 a year — the same benefits as full-time officers represented by a union contract receive.

But the new proposal in Harrisburg would change those figures dramatically, if health benefits are extended to part-timers across the state.

Admittedly, some municipalities might already have part-time officers covered with health plans via union contracts. But none of them are mandated across the state.

The new law is apparently Miller’s latest attempt at mandating benefits for part-time officers. Similar measures, introduced as House Bill 189 in 2023 and House Bill 667 of 2021, never gained traction.

In addition to mandating coverage, the bill requires parity, forcing local governments to offer part-timers the same insurance as full-timers. If no benefits exist, a locality would have to match benefits offered by the Pennsylvania State Police.

It also clears the way for a part time officer who works in more than one jurisdiction to pick and choose the best coverage offered — requiring they only notify other employers about who’s paying for their insurance.

One thing it doesn’t mandate is a means of the state paying for the benefits.

Left in the lurch, municipalities have few options, like cutting other essential services like road maintenance or code enforcement.

They might also raise taxes, which in communities already at legal limits isn’t possible.

Ultimately, they might eliminate their police departments entirely and rely on state police coverage, which residents already pay for via other taxes.

Also, the mandate does nothing to make communities safer.

With local departments in dire straits and facing closure, response times increase. Officers lose jobs, not because they weren’t valued, but because the town they worked in can’t pay them.

Another bothersome part of the proposal is that it’s a one-sie-fits-all deal. Lansford isn’t Lancaster, and Coaldale isn’t Cheltenham. The reality for smaller communities is that part-timers make policing work.

It’s already hard enough for tinier towns to recruit new police hires as they struggle to come up with the cash for salaries and benefits.

Instead, lawmakers might offer state incentives to increase regionalization or shared services to help police keep small communities safe.

Laws that push small towns toward insolvency aren’t the answer.

They just tighten the handcuffs they’re already working with.

ED SOCHA | tneditor@tnonline.com