Every day, police officers are called to a variety of places to help citizens deal with all sorts of problems, big and small.

But now it’s the officers who are looking for help from the public.

When Oxford Township absentee voters living outside of the village receive their ballots, they will be asked to approve a five-year, 3.9152-mill request to continue paying for police protection provided by the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO).

The township is planning to send out at least 1,829 absentee ballots this week.

“We are shooting for Wednesday,” said Deputy Clerk Susan McCullough.

Ballots mailed to village voters will not contain the police question because the village funds and maintains its own law enforcement agency.

If approved, the police tax would be levied from December 2020 through December 2024. In its first year, it’s expected to generate $3.17 million.

“We think the amount we’re asking for is fair,” said Sheriff’s Sgt. Frank Lenz, second-in-command at the Oxford substation.

The police proposal seeks to get the millage rate back to what it was when voters passed it in November 2014.

Back then, it was set at 3.9152 mills, but over the years, the Headlee Amendment reduced the rate to its current 3.7939 mills.

One mill is equal to $1 for every $1,000 of a property’s taxable value.

Raising the tax back to its original rate would allow the substation to maintain its current staffing and potentially add officers over the life of the millage.

Lenz said the “goal” is to bring aboard three more officers, “but I can’t guarantee it.” The number will ultimately depend on the amount of revenue the millage generates and OCSO contract costs in the coming years.

“It appears we will be able to (add three officers), but I can’t make a promise,” the sergeant said.

The sheriff’s substation is currently staffed by 17 officers – 13 road patrol deputies, a detective, a school liaison (or resource) officer, a sergeant and a lieutenant.

This is the same number of officers the township had in 2005.

The problem is, the township’s population has grown since then, so more officers are needed to keep pace with the increased demand for service and “keep response times at a respectable level,” according to Sheriff’s Lt. Scott Patterson, substation commander.

Using the analogy of a single waitress covering an entire restaurant by herself, Patterson said if you’re the only customer in the place, “you don’t have to wait for anything.”

“But, if another 10 or 12 people come in,” he said you’re no longer going to receive the same quality and speed of service.

“You can only do so much with what you’ve got,” Patterson said.

The same is true for law enforcement. Patterson said people can’t expect response times to stay the same, or even improve, with a static number of officers serving a growing community. Those times will grow longer unless more cops are added.

The quality of police work can also be impacted by a lack of manpower in the face of increased demand for service.

For example, Oxford’s substation currently has one detective – the same number it had in 2000 when the sheriff’s office began serving the township. According to Lenz, that detective, Shane Freiberg, “does an outstanding job,” but he’s handling more than 500 cases annually.

“That’s way too much for one detective (to deal with and still) be as thorough as we would like him to be,” Lenz said.

This situation hasn’t become an issue for Oxford because the substation’s lieutenant, sergeant and school liaison officer all have investigative experience and can step in when necessary. But that can’t be relied upon forever because eventually, the substation’s makeup is going to change as a result of transfers, reassignments, promotions, retirements, etc. There could come a day when there are no other officers at the substation with the investigative skills to back up the detective.

“We’re able to keep our head above water, but that water is creeping up,” Lenz said.

Despite having the same amount of staffing as it did 14 years ago, Oxford’s substation had the second highest clearance rate of the 12 substations in the county last year,

Of the 259 crimes reported, 63.71 percent (or 165) were cleared or closed, meaning they either resulted in an arrest (98) or were cleared by exceptional means (67). Exceptional means are reasons beyond law enforcement’s control that prevented an offender from being arrested and charged.

Having additional officers would also enable the substation to engage in more proactive policing versus reactive police work, according to Patterson and Lenz.

Proactive policing involves frequently patrolling streets, neighborhoods and commercial areas and staying in close touch with residents and business owners, all in an effort to prevent crimes from happening.

Reactive policing consists of responding to calls, taking reports and investigating crimes after they occur.

“I think (it’s) proven that you can keep (the) crime rate down by being more proactive,” Patterson said.

Lenz said there’s not been much time to do any proactive policing these days given the workload. “It’s been a few months since I’ve had an opportunity to get in my car and just go to random businesses throughout the township and see what they need because I’m too busy playing catch up,” Lenz said. “It’s not the way I like to do things. I like to be proactive and get out there. (I like to) meet and greet, take care of their needs before they call for us.”

“We need to increase our staffing to meet the needs of the growing community, so we can continue the excellent service we provide now into the future,” the sergeant added.

Patterson said this millage proposal boils down to one simple fact – like anything else in life, if you want police services, “you have to pay for them.”

“We greatly appreciate the support we’ve (received) from the community since we’ve been out here and we want to continue that relationship,” Lenz said.