MCLEA Members,

This morning Vice-President Steve Mullis and I met with Sheriff Gage to talk to him about the 2.5 million taken from the Sheriff’s Office budget by the Auditor’s office and to offer him the support of our Association.  I believe it is vital that we work with our Administration on issues that affect us as employees, and anytime that much money is taken from our budget, it affects us all. Sheriff Gage was very candid and open during our discussion and was very appreciative of our support.

We also talked to Sheriff Gage about the issues with the STEP program and he brought Ms. Carol Thompson into the meeting. This is a battle they have fought with Commissioner’s Court since the STEP program came into existence, and should not be fighting it alone. It appears to be the opinion of the County Auditor’s office and some of the Commissioners that your STEP pay does not take effect on your anniversary date, but rather at the following budget.   This means that some of you will wait nearly a year before your raise takes effect and that is unacceptable.  This discussion also covered the possibility of a STEP-type program for civilian employees, or some similar program that would balance out the pay inequity for our civilian brothers and sisters in the Association. 

These are big battles for us to fight as an Association, and they will have to be fought with those in power in our County. Just as any military’s strength lies in its numbers; our Association needs to grow significantly larger to become a force to be reckoned with. Steve and I are willing to step up and fight for all of you, but in return we ask that you be willing to fight for yourselves as well. You don’t have to be the voice of MCLEA; that is what we were elected to do. All we ask is that you show your support and stand with us as MCLEA works for you.

 We are asking that each member of our Association reach out to your friends and co-workers and encourage them to join MCLEA so that their voice can join us in our endeavors.  Many have asked us what MCLEA is going to do for them, and I believe that our discussion this morning is just one example of what we are willing to try. In order for us to accomplish that which you ask of us, we need to be able to show the Commissioner’s Court that the Montgomery County Law Enforcement community is united, and we can only do that if we have the membership numbers as proof.

Sincerely,

Paul S. Hahs Sr

President, MCLEA