Turnpike Authority plans to fund trooper academy

The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority has agreed to pay $5 million so the Oklahoma Highway Patrol can conduct a 2018 trooper academy, officials announced Thursday.

Oklahoma Department of Public Safety Commissioner Michael C. Thompson lauded the Turnpike Authority for stepping in to fund the program to train new troopers at a time when there is not enough money in the state budget to pay for an academy.

“It’s important ... that we have some new troopers coming into the pipeline to be able to offset the attrition that we have,” Thompson said. “This offer from the Turnpike Authority is truly monumental.”

Thompson said the Highway Patrol hopes to train about 30 new troopers through the academy, which should be about enough to replace those who leave through retirement and attrition.

It is critical to have a training academy in 2018 because the Highway Patrol is down to 790 troopers, which is a smaller force than it had in 1990, he said.

The $5 million will cover the costs of training and equipping the troopers and pay for their salaries and benefits for the first year, Thompson said. The Turnpike Authority is picking up the entire cost of the training academy for 2018.

Tim Gatz, executive director of the Turnpike Authority, said the authority was glad to be in a position to help.