Why Financial Wellness is an Officer Wellness Issue

Timothy Cooney, Deputy Chief of Police, Village of Algonquin, Illinois

Timothy Cooney, Deputy Chief of Police, Village of Algonquin, Illinois

Tim Cooney is a law enforcement leader in the Chicagoland suburbs with nearly two decades of experience in policing, including roles in operations, training, investigations and administration. His perspective on financial wellness is rooted in lived experience—both professionally and personally. After he and his family eliminated more than $67,000 in consumer debt, he saw firsthand how financial clarity reduces stress and improves focus. That experience led him to help create TPC Financial Coaching LLC, an education-based initiative designed to support first responders without sales pressure or product promotion. Through structured financial wellness programming, initiatives he has helped lead have contributed to over $1 million in aggregate financial improvement within a public safety organization.

Through this article, Cooney highlights financial wellness as an organizational responsibility, arguing that agencies that invest in it strengthen individual officers, improve operational readiness and support healthier, more sustainable careers.

Law enforcement professionals are trained to manage risk, make sound decisions under pressure and operate with discipline. Yet one area that often goes unaddressed throughout an officer’s career is personal financial wellness.

After nearly two decades in law enforcement, I have seen firsthand how financial stress quietly follows officers to roll call, into the patrol car and home after shift. It is rarely discussed openly, but it has real consequences for performance, focus and long-term well-being.

Most agencies do an excellent job addressing physical safety, training and mental health resources. Financial health, however, is often treated as a personal issue rather than an organizational one. When it is addressed, it is usually limited to a brief benefits meeting or an investment presentation. While retirement planning is important, it does little to help an officer who is overwhelmed by debt, lacks a working budget or has no financial margin when life happens.

"Financial wellness is not a luxury or an add-on. It is a foundational component of officer wellness. When agencies acknowledge this and provide education without pressure or judgment, they strengthen not only individual officers, but the organization as a whole."

My perspective on this issue comes from lived experience. I have worked alongside officers at every stage of their careers, from recruits to mid-career officers, supervisors and command staff. Across ranks and assignments, the same patterns appear. Financial stress does not discriminate by income or experience. Officers who appear successful on paper often feel trapped behind the scenes, working excessive overtime not for advancement or purpose, but simply to keep up.

This stress does not stay at home. It shows up at work in subtle but meaningful ways, including reduced focus, fatigue from constant overtime, irritability and compromised decision-making. In a profession that demands presence, patience and sound judgment, financial strain adds weight to an already heavy load.

One of the most common misconceptions is that income solves financial problems. Law enforcement offers stable pay and strong benefits, yet many officers still struggle financially. The issue is rarely math. It is behavior, habits and the absence of practical education. Officers are trained extensively on policy, procedure and tactics, but many are left to navigate personal finances on their own, often through trial and error.

Over time, seeing this pattern repeatedly is what led me to help create a financial education model specifically for first responders, one built around teaching rather than selling. Too often, the only financial conversations officers encounter involves products, commissions or pressure to act quickly. That approach creates skepticism and avoidance, not confidence. Officers need education that respects their intelligence, acknowledges the realities of the profession and provides tools without an agenda.

Leadership plays a critical role in shifting this culture. Just as officers are trained to control what they can on the street, the same mindset applies to money. Officers cannot control inflation, interest rates or the broader economy, but they can control how they manage what enters and leaves their household. Learning to budget, reduce debt and build an emergency fund creates stability and clarity.

Effective financial wellness initiatives are not one-time events. They are ongoing, practical and focused on behavior rather than theory. Officers respond well to structure. A budget functions much like a policy or procedure. It provides direction, reduces uncertainty and creates consistency. When officers have a plan, they are less reactive and more intentional.

Agencies that prioritize financial wellness are not overreaching. They are supporting officer readiness. Financial margin allows officers to make decisions based on what is right, not what is urgent. It reduces reliance on excessive overtime and provides breathing room when personal or family challenges arise.

Financial wellness is not a luxury or an add-on. It is a foundational component of officer wellness. When agencies acknowledge this and provide education without pressure or judgment, they strengthen not only individual officers, but the organization as a whole.

Financial