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Jul. 16—The Albuquerque Police Department will — once again — be the highest paid law enforcement agency in New Mexico thanks to a new contract signed by the city of Albuquerque and police union leaders. The collective bargaining agreement outlines a 5% pay raise for officers in 2024 followed by a 4% raise in 2025. The contract will now head to the City Council for final approval. "Mayor (Tim) Keller's investment in our police officers puts us in a great position as we work to recruit new officers and keep the hard-working officers who are putting in the hard work every day to keep Albuquerque safe," APD Chief Harold Medina said in a statement. "This 5% raise with another 4% next year sends a strong message that we support our officers. They deserve all the support we can give them." Shaun Willoughby, president of the Albuquerque police union, said officers were "overwhelmingly in favor" of the contract with only five, out of hundreds, voting against it. "I think that we've made some major strides. I think we have a lot of work ahead of us to do but the rank and file are happy about the contract and we're waiting for it to go through the process so it can start to reflect in their paycheck," he said. The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office had surpassed the Albuquerque Police Department's pay scale in June, giving first class deputies a 17% raise, or $35.72 an hour. In a Journal interview, Sheriff John Allen said BCSO had been struggling to build ranks and hasn't been keeping up with salaries seen at APD and other agencies. If approved, APD's new contract will have wiped away BCSO's lead by 2025, if only marginally, when first class officers get their second raise, making $35.91 an hour. APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said the department has also made other investments toward recruitment. He said cadets received a 37% pay increase, to almost $29 hourly, and patrolman 2nd Class got a 31% increase, to just over $30 an hour. Gallegos said lateral hires with more than two years experience will get a pay increase, from $30.32 to $31.89 an hour, and police service aides, or PSA's, are being paid $16.20 an hour, up from $15.43.