GCGovComp.app

City of Buffalo / Police Accident Inv Unit / Police Lieutenant

Job-title file

Police Lieutenant

Enforce laws and maintain public safety — patrol, respond to incidents, investigate crimes, and make arrests.

1 employees hold this title in Police Accident Inv Unit. Median total compensation for the role is $186,845, above the department median of $143,808.

Employees
1
Total payroll
$186.8K
Role median
$186,845
Agency median
$143,808
Comparison
Above

Compared with the local labor market

Police Lieutenant pay vs. the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area

Across all employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area, the median wage for First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives — about 510 people — is $103,330. Police Accident Inv Unit pays a median base salary of $88,383 for this role, 14% below that figurebelow the 10th percentile of local pay for the occupation.

Where Police Accident Inv Unit sits in the local pay range

10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
$92,300
$97,020
$103,330
$120,820
$132,570
Police Accident Inv Unit median · $88,383

The bar is the range of annual wages for First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives across every employer in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Police Accident Inv Unit’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.

And across the country

Nationwide, the median wage for First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives — about 154,610 people — is $106,040. Police Accident Inv Unit’s median base salary is 17% below that national figure, about the 32nd percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.

10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
$63,350
$81,860
$106,040
$132,620
$165,110
Police Accident Inv Unit median · $88,383

Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY range relative to the national one.

Median total compensation for this role at Police Accident Inv Unit is $186,845, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.

Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.

Compare departments

This role across City of Buffalo

Police Lieutenant is held in 25 City of Buffalo departments. In Police Accident Inv Unit, the median of $186,845 ranks #2 of 25.

Highest-paying departments for this role

Median total compensation for the Police Lieutenant role in other City of Buffalodepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.

Compare jurisdictions

Police Lieutenant beyond City of Buffalo

This role is reported in 22 jurisdictions. In City of Buffalo, the median of $133,026 ranks #12 of 22. See Police Lieutenant across all of City of Buffalo

Highest-paying jurisdictions for this role

City of San Jose
$423,129 · 48
City of Boston
$312,362 · 71
City of Los Angeles
$274,725 · 216
City of Seattle
$216,840 · 35
City of Worcester
$214,478 · 28

Median total compensation for comparable Police Lieutenantroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.

Record list

Employees with this title

Page 1

Timothy O'Rourke

Police Lieutenant/Police Accident Inv Unit

2026 total comp
$186,845
Sub-department
Public Safety
Base pay
$88,383
Overtime
$69,236
Other pay
$29,226
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$186,845

Source-specific fields

Employeeid
165037

Timothy O'Rourke holds the role of Police Lieutenant at Police Accident Inv Unit within Public Safety. In 2026, their total compensation was $186,845.