On July 17, 2006, Cary Chapter members were in attendance at the Wake County Commissioners meeting to support the Raleigh-Wake Chapter as information was presented to request a resolution of support for the 25 year retirement.  The information was presented during the public speaking segment and information was passed out to the commissioners in attendance.  The North Carolina Police Benevolent Association has been actively supporting the 25 year retirement for more than a decade.  Some of the points that were made in the presentation included the following:

• Practically every state in the country has a 25-year or less retirement system in place.
• Many states and our federal government provide a 20-year retirement for their law enforcement officers.
• Law enforcement is the leading profession in the category of job stress, danger, early death, and a host of medical problems to include heart attacks, diabetes, alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, and suicide.
• The life expectancy of a police officer is 14 years below the national average.
• Many police agencies in our state are reporting shortages of officers.
• Neighboring states like Virginia and South Carolina have already gone to a 25 year retirement system.
• Pay and benefits are 15% to 30% lower than other regions of the country.
• The NC Highway Patrol has reported an 80% reduction in applications since 1992.
• Officers are leaving our state for law enforcement agencies that provide less danger, more pay and better benefits.
• In 2003, over half (54%) of all officer feloniously killed in the line of duty were in the south.  From 1994 to 2003, North Carolina was third among all southern states (and forth in the nation) only behind Texas and Georgia in the amount of officers feloniously killed. 
• Over half of the law enforcement officers assaulted in 2003 were in the South.  North Carolina ranked 5^th in the South and 9^th in the nation in law enforcement officers assaulted in 2003.
• The 25-year retirement is affordable.   The cost is less than 1% of the law enforcement budget of every police agency in North Carolina.

(*Sources:  Police Labor Monthly, U.S. and N.C. Department of Justice-2003 NC Uniform Crime Statistics-SSPBA 2003 Law Enforcement Salary and Benefit Report, NC House Pensions and Retirement Committee Meeting-April 4, 2001)