New recruits to the Hammond police and fire departments may no longer have to live in the city. City Council Member Scott Rakos has sponsored an ordinance to lift the residency requirement.
He says it's become necessary, to compete with other agencies. "Lately, we've been trying to get police officers and, especially, paramedics to hire on from other cities to get on our departments, and one of the main things that was hurting that process was, 'Do I have to live in Hammond?'" Rakos told the rest of the council Monday.
The city council will consider the ordinance further on March 28.