One thousand seventeen dollars per month. That’s a whopping $12,204 annually.
This was a starting salary offered to anyone interested in becoming a Thornton, Colorado police officer in March 1978, according to a classified advertisement printed in an old edition of the Rocky Mountain News.
By December 2025 — 47 years later — starting annual salaries for many neighboring Roaring Fork Valley law enforcers have increased roughly six times that amount. It’s now $76,440 for a beginning Carbondale patrol officer, an annual wage Police Chief Kirk Wilson called “competitive with neighboring agencies.”
“Compensation is always a consideration in recruitment, especially in a region with a high cost of living,” he told The Sopris Sun, adding, “To make entering the profession more feasible, we pay new hires full-time wages while they attend the police academy and cover all tuition and academy costs.”
The past four to five years, however, have still yielded a common “leap frog” game among some of the nine police departments and three sheriff’s offices in the Roaring Fork and Colorado River valleys, said Stacie West, human resources director for the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office. Also a nationwide trend, a local law enforcer might migrate from one neighboring agency to the next based on factors like culture, cost of living and, of course, annual pay.
Pitkin County Sheriff Michael Buglione told The Sopris Sun that three patrol officers recently “have moved laterally” from neighboring agencies to his. Meanwhile, a market analysis prompted Pitkin County in 2024 to begin offering $69,659 base salary to cadets with no experience plus a $1,000 sign-on bonus. If that cadet graduates the academy, the individual receives a 5.7% bump to $73,611.20.
“I think you also need to create a culture,” Buglione said. “Because some people don’t do it for the money.”
Carbondale, a department of 14 sworn positions that historically has its officers sport zany tie-dye shirts underneath their kevlar during Mountain Fair, currently has three sworn openings and are in the process of rehiring a former officer, Wilson said. It also has openings for a civilian records technician and a non-sworn municipal ordinance enforcement officer.
“In most cases, officers join or return to Carbondale because they feel a strong sense of belonging, value the professional opportunities and appreciate the department’s family-oriented culture,” Wilson said. “Officers want to be part of something bigger than themselves and work in an environment where they feel supported both professionally and personally. We work hard to offer that.”
But regular market analyses, though encouraged by law enforcement agencies, do have a negative effect on respective municipal and county budgets. Based on recent studies, the City of Rifle this year increased its starting annual salary for patrol officers to $78,000, with raises ranging between 5.5% to 4% over the next eight years. This prompted the Town of Parachute to implement a 10% budget increase for its police department, and by Jan. 1, 2026, “officer 1” positions will receive an annual pay scale of $59,020 to $84,989.
Meanwhile, Silt Town Manager Jim Mann said a recent compensation range adjustment made by the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office triggered a significant pay bump for its police department. Its compensation range for entry-level police officers is $71,221.50 to $101,745, which is “a little over $10,000 on the high end due to GarCo’s increase.”
Still, openings persist. West said Garfield County, which implemented a range of $67,704, to $75,828 for entry-level positions on July 1, has openings for three positions currently.
“We filled several positions this year,” she said. “But to have those three positions is significant for this agency right now.”
Perhaps feeling the high impact of personnel shortages is the Basalt Police Department, which currently offers $65,707 to cadets and $78,958 when they successfully complete field training, according to Lt. Aaron Munch. The midvalley department currently seeks to fill five open positions.
Starting wages for local law enforcers
Parachute: By Jan. 1, 2026, “officer 1” positions will make between $59,020 to $84,989
Rifle: $78,000, plus annual raises ranging between 5.5% to 4% over the next eight years
Silt: Ranges between $71,221 to $101,745 for entry-level positions
New Castle: By Jan. 1, 2026, starting annual salary range (based on experience) will be $76,000 to $80,000
Glenwood Springs: By Jan. 1, 2006, entry-level positions will make between $72,425 to $82,992
Carbondale: $76,440 for entry-level positions
Basalt: $65,707 for cadets; $75,198 upon academy graduation; $78,958 upon completion of field training
Snowmass Village: Ranges between $73,383 to $95,398 for entry-level positions
Aspen: Figures unavailable upon deadline
Garfield County: Ranges between $67,704 to $75,828 for entry-level positions
Pitkin County: $69,659 with no experience, plus $1,000 sign on bonus; $73,611 upon academy completion