Salem police, fire spending skyrocketed over 2 decades while staff stayed flat, budget data shows

Spending by Salem’s police and fire departments has soared over the last 20 years with little growth in the number of officers and firefighters responding to car crashes or crime scenes.

Two decades of city data shows that public safety staffing has barely increased as Salem’s population has grown, but spending on police and fire has increased rapidly compared with inflation.

City money spent on parks, recreation and Center 50+ has seen less growth since…