Mayor Greg Nickels has signed legislation authorizing a $5,000 signing bonus to help recruit new police officers.

Under his Neighborhood Policing Staffing Plan, Nickels has committed to adding 154 additional patrol officers by 2012 and 69 of those have been added so far and this signing bonus should help ensure Seattle meets it recruiting goals.

"I'm committed to getting those additional officers hired, trained and on the street as soon as possible," Nickels said. "This signing bonus will be an important new tool for us to attract talented police candidates to serve the people of Seattle. I thank the City Council for adopting this proposal."

Within the highly competitive law enforcement profession, police departments across the country, Seattle included, are working harder than ever to attract new officers.

Entry-level recruits will receive $1,000 after 120 hours of service, and the remaining $4,000 upon completion of 600 hours of service and graduation from the Police Academy.