Walter Martin has served his county well as a Smithfield police officer and Princeton commissioner. But we have to differ with him on the “separation allowance” paid to retired Smithfield police officers.

State lawmakers created the separation allowance as a bridge to Social Security. The law rightly recognizes that some police officers, even after 30 years on the job, are eligible to retire long before they reach the age at which they qualify for Social Security benefits. The separation allowance supplements police retirement pay until officers reach Social Security age.

In Smithfield, outgoing town manager Pete Connet says the town should not pay the separation allowance to retired officers who take a job elsewhere in local law enforcement. Mr. Martin says doing so would limit his job opportunities in retirement.

With all due respect to Mr. Martin, his job opportunities in retirement are not Smithfield’s concern. But town leaders ought to be concerned about how they spend the citizens’ money, and it makes no sense for taxpayers to pay Mr. Martin, or any other officer, an allowance to be an officer in another town. Already, small towns find it hard to keep good police officers. They should not offer their veteran officers a financial incentive to go police another community.

In arguing to keep the separation allowance no matter what, Mr. Martin says he has spent his professional career protecting the people of Smithfield. We hope he’ll forgive the town council if it decides to do likewise.