As Walker County’s population grows, Sheriff Steve Wilson says, he’s worried about shrinking job rolls and mandatory furloughs in the Georgia State Patrol.
“Anytime you have cuts at the state level, it rolls down the hills to the county level,” he said. “People still expect those services to be fulfilled.”
Local law enforcement personnel say they feel the effects of 12 mandated furlough days per year per trooper and smaller staffs within the state patrol.
Patrol officers primarily enforce traffic laws and investigate accidents, said Georgia Department of Public Safety spokesman Gordy Wright.
There are 48 posts statewide, and in each post patrol officers cover two to five counties, he said. Georgia authorizes 953 trooper positions, and 158 of those spots are vacant, Mr. Wright said.