Ransom Twp. In the new year there will be a new police force.
The Taylor Borough Council voted Wednesday to authorize Council President Ken Mickavicz to negotiate and execute a contract with Ransom Twp. that will expand the Taylor Police Department’s coverage to its western neighbor starting Jan. 1.
“We came to an agreement that is fair to everyone, and the biggest benefit of it is that it does not reduce police protection in Taylor in any way,” Mickavicz said. “It won’t cost Taylor taxpayers any money at all because (Ransom Twp.) would pay for their fair share.”
Ransom Twp. plans to pass its own legislation later this month to approve the contract, said Dave Bird, chairman of the township’s Board of Supervisors.
“We’re very, very happy about this,” Bird said. “For the coverage that we’re getting, we’re very grateful that this all came together.”
Under the proposed contract, Ransom Twp. will pay $287,232 for 2025, a 4% increase in 2026 and then again in 2027 for 24/7 police services, Taylor Police Chief Brian Holland said.
Taylor determined the funding amount based on what it currently pays for police services divided by the population, and then applied that to the population of Ransom Twp., Mickaviz said. The 4% annual increases are responsible for rising fuel and labor costs, he said.
Ransom Twp. will also pay for an additional police vehicle for the department: a Chevrolet Tahoe PPV, a police model of the SUV that costs $80,000 to $90,000, Holland said. The new vehicle will offset the wear and tear on the expanded coverage area, Mickavicz said.
It is a one-year agreement that is automatically renewed in years two and three. Both cities have a no-fail-out clause built into the contract, whereby either party can terminate the contract with 90 days’ notice, Holland said.
Ransom Twp. will be treated like a Taylor neighborhood with officers patrolling the city, he said. The community will be part of a patrol zone that includes “everything west of Keyser Avenue,” Holland said.
With the hiring of an additional officer on Wednesday, the department now has twelve full-time officers and nine part-time officers, which is enough to serve Ransom Twp. to accommodate, he said.
However, Holland plans to staff additional officers for each shift.
“The additional resources available will also benefit the residents of Taylor,” he said.
The community receives about 130 police calls a year, he said. By comparison, Taylor is on track for about 8,000 police calls by 2024, Holland said.
“It’s a drop in the ocean,” he says.
Taylor police periodically responded to calls from Ransom Twp. Either way because of their shared border and mutual aid agreements, Holland said.
Ransom Twp. currently receive police services through the Pennsylvania State Police, which provides police coverage to municipalities that do not have their own departments.
When the contract becomes effective, Ransom Twp. residents will see a significant increase in police presence and faster response times, Holland said.
Ransom Twp. previously contracted with South Abington Twp. for police services, but in November 2023, South Abington informed the council that it would end the service after December 31, 2023, following a breakdown in contract negotiations. The termination also affected Newton Twp., although Newton later reached a new agreement with South Abington Twp. for 37 hours per week of police protection by 2024.
Ransom Twp. also explored a 2024 police agreement with Clarks Summit that would have provided the municipality with its own dedicated, full-time police officer, but Bird said the two cities were unable to reach an agreement, prompting Ransom to instead deal with state police to go. the past year.
The state police have been great to work with, but they are spread very thin, he said.
Ransom Twp. is able to cover the cost of Taylor’s police coverage, making the decision a “no brainer” because of the 24-hour police protection, Bird said.
“We’ll pay more, but the service we get will speak for itself,” he said.
Taylor police will be issued key fobs to access all township buildings, including the Township Building and Ransom’s two community halls, should officers need a place to use the bathroom or file a report, Bird said .
Bird met with Taylor police on Wednesday to give them a tour of the community.
“When they came and we met them, they were just outstanding – so professional,” Bird said. “They are so well equipped that they can do almost anything.”
Ransom Twp. The city first approached Taylor about a police agreement about a year and a half ago, but asked the city to explore all other options first, Mickavicz said.
With Ransom’s options exhausted, the cities reached a fair agreement, he said, adding that he expects to see more regionalization in police departments over the next decade.
“The main reason we are doing this is because our neighbors bordering our city have asked us if we can help,” Mickavicz said.
