Washington State’s police staffing levels have fallen again, according to new figures released by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC). For the fifteenth consecutive year, Washington ranks last in the nation in commissioned law enforcement officers per capita — a trend that continues to shape public safety debates from Olympia to Cowlitz County.

WASPC Executive Director Steve Strachan told KIRO Newsradio, as reported by MyNorthwest, that statewide numbers for 2025 show a decline in the per‑capita rate of officers. Washington added 68 officers between 2024 and 2025, but population growth of roughly 79,400 people pushed the ratio down to 1.37 officers per 1,000 residents. Strachan described the trajectory as “going in the wrong direction.”

The staffing decline is not new. WASPC’s annual Crime in Washington reports have documented Washington at 51st in officer levels — behind every state and the District of Columbia — for more than a decade. Statewide totals show modest fluctuations in absolute numbers of officers from 2011 through 2025, but population growth has consistently outpaced hiring.

For local agencies in Southwest Washington, limited staffing often translates into longer response times, more frequent reliance on mutual aid, and challenges maintaining specialized units. Cowlitz County agencies — including Longview Police, Kelso Police, and the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office — operate within the same statewide labor pool that Strachan says continues to experience retirements and departures faster than new recruits can replace them.

Strachan also pointed to legislative delays. He noted that a statewide program intended to support local hiring — offering grants and additional taxing authority — has not yet produced results. According to his statement, as of February 2026, “not one officer” has been hired through the program, and no grant dollars have been awarded. Local officials in Cowlitz County have previously indicated that long timelines and procedural requirements in state‑level programs can complicate efforts to meet immediate staffing needs.

The full 2025 Crime in Washington report is expected to be released this summer. Those figures will offer community‑level detail, including updated data for Cowlitz County jurisdictions.

Why this matters for Cowlitz County

Local law enforcement agencies have consistently described recruitment and retention as a pressing operational issue. While each city and the county sheriff’s office maintain their own hiring processes, all draw from a constrained statewide applicant pool. When Washington remains last in staffing per capita, rural and mid‑sized communities frequently feel the impact first, particularly during peak call periods or major incidents that strain limited personnel.

Statewide trends also shape budget planning for cities like Longview and Kelso, where leaders have spent recent years weighing overtime costs, training demands, and the need to sustain patrol coverage while vacancies remain open. Future state action on recruitment funding — or continued inaction — will directly influence how quickly local agencies can restore or expand their ranks.

Columbia Countercurrent will review the 2025 Crime in Washington report upon release and provide updated analysis on what the numbers mean for policing in Southwest Washington.

Sources