BRIDGEPORT — Staffing in the Police Department could be critically low by 2008 as the number of officers eligible for retirement grows, intensifying the need for an entrance exam, police union officials charge.

If they don't get the ball rolling now, we re going to be in serious trouble, said Sgt. Donald Jacques, president of Bridgeport Police Union Local 1159.

There are now 23 officers eligible for retirement, and 37 more can retire by 2008, Jacques said.

The test for new officers should be scheduled soon because it could take several years between administering and grading the exams and assembling a hiring list, Jacques said.

An exact number of openings for officers was not available. But a sergeant s exam set for April will increase that number, he said, as officers vie to be promoted. The department has six unfilled sergeant positions.

We need the supervisory staff out there, but we also need the new hires, Jacques said.

The department s staffing is at 428.

The fully authorized complement is 517, but Jacques, an 18-year-veteran, said the highest actual staffing was in the high 400s during the early 1990s.

The staffing level can also be misleading, Jacques said, because some of the 428 are not on the job due to illness or injury, and several more are seeking to retire with service-related disability pensions in the next several months.

Former Chief Wilbur Chapman, whose contract the city bought out last month, had pushed to retire some of them.

This is a full-body contact sport, Jacques said. We'd like to get people back to work as soon as possible. We'll do our best to support them.

Chapman had pushed for an entrance exam to hire new officers throughout his five-year tenure, and acting Chief Anthony Armeno has the same goal.

This is an area we need to move forward as far as priorities are concerned, he told the Board of Police Commissioners last week.

The city s Civil Service Department conducts hiring and promotional exams.

Mayor John M. Fabrizi has said that overtime by the police and fire departments is contributing a large share of a $7.5 million deficit the city currently is tallying in its budget.

Jacques said he did not know if hiring new officers would be more expensive than paying overtime.

Aaron Leo, who covers regional issues, can be reached at 330-6222.