Santa Barbara cops are back in the saddle.

After years of struggling with recruitment and retention, the Santa Barbara Police Department is experiencing its highest staffing levels in more than a decade.

Last year alone, it hired 20 new officers — a statistic that is “almost unheard of,” according to Police Chief Kelly Gordon.

“About five years ago, probably a little less, we saw a very significant exodus from the department,” Gordon said. “I guess that’s the best way to put it. We lost a great deal of officers.”

Gordon made a presentation recently to the Santa Barbara City Council where she talked about a historic rebound from low department morale and unsuccessful recruitment efforts.

Recruitment and retention historically have been challenging because of the high cost of housing in Santa Barbara and on the South Coast, but the department saw applications drop from 1,400 in 2017 to 208 in 2022, when Gordon was hired.

“As a department and as a chief, we are doing everything we can to fill the vacancies,” Gordon said.

The Police Department in 2022 had a vacancy rate of about 25%. Now, it is down to 10%. The department has about 127 sworn officers employed.

The killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer sparked a national backlash against police policies and cast a light on Santa Barbara.

Santa Barbara Mayor Randy Rowse said he decided to run for mayor because of the “narrative around policing.”

“The whole Police Department thing and national narrative around George Floyd is what inspired me to run for mayor,” Rowse said. “Recruitment and retention were down, and no one wanted to be a cop.”

Rowse said the department is doing better at recruitment, increasing diversity and trying to hire local residents.

“I am a big fan of the Police Department,” Rowse said. “There was a time when people resisted the career, but police officers are more than just people with a gun strapped at their side. They really want to help people.”

For the 2026 fiscal year, the department has a proposed $61 million budget. Gordon said 22 applicants are in the hiring process so far this year. The city hired 20 officers a year ago, up from seven in 2022.

The department is targeting local residents, focusing on diversity in hiring, reaching out on social media and trying to offer “competitive salaries.”

“We’re not stopping, and we’re going to continue to try to fill all those positions,” Gordon said.

She said officers go through a six-month academy, then six months in the field before they actually hit the streets. The department goes through a hiring process every month.

The Police Department has a $61 million budget, and Measure I, the half-cent sales tax approved by voters in November 2024, is paying for about 34 positions, totaling about $6.3 million.

“We really need to get to our full staffing,” Gordon said. “We know we have the needs.”

This is one in an ongoing series of stories about the City of Santa Barbara’s proposed budget for 2026. Check back to Noozhawk for stories on various departments.