The regularly scheduled meeting of Rifle’s city council on Dec. 18 included discussions of health insurance premiums and workers’ compensation for the city staff and awarding a construction project and considering approval for another police officer position.

Danielle Hogan, director of Human Resources for the city of Rifle, presented on workers’ compensation and the health insurance premiums. 

“The workers’ compensation insurance, which we broker through Pinnacol Assurance,” Hogan said. 

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The initial annual premium that was assessed for 2025 was roughly $196,000. The city received discounts for $44,000, bringing the total to around $152,000. Hogan said there was a little over a 6% increase from last year’s premium. 

Hogan also presented health insurance premiums for the city through the County Health Pool and the rate increase Rifle received was 9% from last year’s. 

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The total estimated cost for eligible employees in 2025 is around almost $2 million. Both the workers’ compensation and health insurance premiums were approved unanimously. 

Next, the council considered awarding Martinez Western Constructors the bid for the Park Avenue Extension Project.

This project will install the water and road for the Rifle Apartments currently being constructed behind Brenden Theater. 

“(This) is one of the most impactful projects that Rifle can have to improve traffic as well to improve downtown, as it winds up sort of bookending the Rifle downtown,” said Craig Spaulding, civil engineer for the city. 

Spaulding said they received two bids, one from Martinez Western Constructors and one from Johnson Construction. Although the city has experience with both, Spaulding said they chose the lowest bid for the amount of roughly $820,000. 

The city awarded the bid to Martinez Western Constructors. 

For the final presentation, Rifle Police Chief Debra Funston asked for approval for another police officer position. 

“As you’ve known, even ever since I’ve been here, we’ve been short staffed and it’s just a constant struggle trying to get police officers on board, trained, put through our process and then out on the road so that they’re working for our community,” Funston said. 

Funston explained it can take six to seven months to find potential candidates and the train them. Candidates go through an extensive background process like most police departments. 

Some candidates must be put through the academy and will then come back as a certified officer and they then go through field training. Funston said they’re requiring those who go through the academy to come up with the funding so there’s more ‘skin in the game’ for them. 

“In the past three years I’ve been here, we’ve lost four or five, where three or four of them were during the field training process where they weren’t able to complete their field training,” Funston said. “When that happens, we have to go back to ground zero.”

Funston said agencies across Colorado are trying to find ways to streamline the hiring and training process, but that doesn’t always help because some officers leave to go back to family or just be in another city.

The reason Funston is asking for another position to be open is because if a great applicant comes up, she wouldn’t have to deny them, as technically the Rifle PD is “full,” but in case they lose another officer, then they will still have that full force.

Councilor Chris Bornholdt asked if that money wouldn’t be better used to raise salaries for the police officers they have now. 

Funston said that although Rifle doesn’t necessarily have special assignments for officers like other, bigger municipalities, salary hasn’t been a reason why officers leave, especially since Rifle PD changed the way their salaries work, where their salaries increase due to different milestones met, like completing field training or finishing a year mark at the Rifle PD. 

Hogan also said that the Rifle PD’s salaries are either in line or higher than most of the jurisdictions in their area. 

The position was approved unanimously, with councilor Alicia Gresley absent.

“Fortunately, I have a couple of them that say, ‘Chief, we love it here, we’re never leaving’, and to me that’s a big win, because we have such a great organization here,” Funston said. “The city supports us so much and I can tell you from working in other cities, that’s not always the case.”