Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department entry pay

What Port Authority of New York and New Jersey says about itself

The Port Authority Police Department (PAPD) consists of over 2,100 dedicated uniformed staff operating across thirteen facilities. The PAPD is responsible for ensuring the safety and security of all of the agency's facilities. This includes five airports, four bi-state bridges and two tunnels, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, the PATH rail system, and the regional seaports in New York and New Jersey. The PAPD also is responsible for the safety and security of patrons and infrastructure at the 16-acre World Trade Center site, home to the iconic One World Trade Center.

What Port Authority of New York and New Jersey does

The Port Authority Police Department is the police force of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, a bi-state authority, and its officers hold dual-state law enforcement jurisdiction across New York and New Jersey. It polices thirteen facilities: John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia, Newark Liberty and Teterboro airports, the George Washington Bridge, the Lincoln and Holland tunnels, the Bayonne Bridge, Goethals Bridge and Outerbridge Crossing, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, the World Trade Center campus, the PATH rail system and the port facilities. Specialised commands include Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting, Commercial Vehicle Inspection, a Counter Terrorism Unit, the Criminal Investigations Bureau, an Emergency Service Unit, a K-9 unit formed in 1984, the Police Academy and a Youth Services Unit working on child trafficking. Promotion runs through Detective, Sergeant, Detective Sergeant, Lieutenant, Detective Lieutenant and Commanding Officer to three- and four-star Chief.

Where the figure comes from

Checked 27 August 2026. Salary upon graduation from the Police Academy, PAPD recruitment site salary and benefits page. — open the source document
SALARY UPON GRADUATION FROM THE POLICE ACADEMY $49,818.08. The Authority publishes three figures in order: a starting salary of $46,954.96 while in the academy, $49,818.08 on graduation, and $61,270.82 after one year of service, with step increases for up to ten years to a top base of $131,703.52. The post-academy figure is the one recorded here. The published figures exclude overtime, shift differentials, holiday pay and uniform allowances, and the Authority states they are subject to change under the labor contract. Recruits may claim 30 academic credits from Thomas Edison State University on graduating from the academy, retirement is through the New York State and Local Police and Fire Retirement System at 20 years regardless of age, and tuition assistance covers up to 85% of approved course costs.
Entry-level base salary only. Overtime, bonuses, education incentives, shift differentials, locality pay and lateral rates are excluded, so most officers earn more than this.

How this level compares

Where Port Authority of New York and New Jersey sits is partly about the agency and partly about which level of policing it belongs to. The three levels do not pay the same.

How it ranks

Common questions

How much does a Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department officer make?

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department starts a new officer on $49,818 a year, about $23.95 an hour on a 2,080-hour year. That is base salary before overtime, bonuses, education incentives, shift differentials and locality pay, so most serving officers earn more. The figure comes from Salary upon graduation from the Police Academy, PAPD recruitment site salary and benefits page..

Is that good pay for a police officer in New Jersey?

It ranks #23 of 27 agencies we have verified in New Jersey — 4 pay less, 22 pay more in the state — and #2,097 of 2,288 nationally. Against the national median it is $16,867 below, and against other special jurisdiction agencies $10,386 below.

The agencies either side of it