05-11-2007, 02:06 AM
Hiring freeze means no new deputiesBy Hector Florin
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 10, 2007
An indefinite hiring freeze is in place at the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office to offset increased overtime hours employees worked to crack down on gang violence, and cuts to local government budgets that could result from tax reform proposals state lawmakers are considering.
Job vacancies for the 3,810-employee agency, which includes non-uniformed personnel, will still be filled, Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said in an interview Wednesday.
But the hiring of 30 new deputies this year, planned during last year's budget process, won't happen. Bradshaw proposed no new hires in the budget he submitted to the county last week.
As a result, a new suburban Boynton Beach substation that is ready to be occupied won't open.
"It's already built," Bradshaw said. "It's going to be sitting there vacant."
Budget constraints also have forced Bradshaw to cut back on the number of new patrol cars he intended to buy to replace older models; neighborhood patrols will be cut back; and school resource officers may be moved out of schools and given different assignments.
Money to increase the agency's training budget and order additional body armor was also cut from next year's budget.
Bradshaw called the increase in the proposed $426 million spending plan - a $41.8 million bump from this year - "the bare minimum." Most of the new money requested will go to pay for deputies' salaries and benefits agreed to in a collective bargaining agreement signed with the county's Police Benevolent Association in August.
Bradshaw said the hiring freeze has been in place since March and "will go on until there's some type of relief given to the counties. It's all up in the air" in Tallahassee.
"The bottom line is I tried to make my budget reflect what it takes for this agency to keep the people safe," Bradshaw said.
The union contract increased deputies' starting salary by 12 percent to $42,300, raising the office's salary rank from 13th to fifth among county agencies.
Higher pay is a key tool to lure new deputies to the sheriff's office.
Recent job candidates who signed up to participate in the sheriff's office law enforcement academy sponsorship program have been told the department won't pick up the cost, as it has previously. Between 50 and 100 candidates are affected, Bradshaw said.
Jupiter resident Ronnie Shand submitted an application to join the program last September. He went through the pre-academy physical and psychological testing and was told he would enter the academy in January. But then everything was put on hold.
He was then told he would have to pay $3,500 to attend the academy. A mechanical engineer with Lockheed Martin who also holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice, Shand until recently volunteered in the sheriff's North Palm Beach district and was ready for a career change - one that came with a significant pay cut.
"I'm just upset by the fact that when I applied, they didn't keep us updated on what was happening," Shand said. "They made me waste six months of my life."
Shand said he would have applied to other police agencies had he known earlier that the sheriff's office wouldn't sponsor the academy and that a hiring freeze was being considered.
The county's other large public safety agency is also being affected by the budget crunch.
Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue Chief Herman Brice announced the department will delay hiring its July recruitment class, which included about 30 people, until the fall, because of the unresolved tax reform debate in the capital.
State lawmakers will attempt to reach a consensus on property taxes and government spending during a special session that begins June 12.
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 10, 2007
An indefinite hiring freeze is in place at the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office to offset increased overtime hours employees worked to crack down on gang violence, and cuts to local government budgets that could result from tax reform proposals state lawmakers are considering.
Job vacancies for the 3,810-employee agency, which includes non-uniformed personnel, will still be filled, Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said in an interview Wednesday.
But the hiring of 30 new deputies this year, planned during last year's budget process, won't happen. Bradshaw proposed no new hires in the budget he submitted to the county last week.
As a result, a new suburban Boynton Beach substation that is ready to be occupied won't open.
"It's already built," Bradshaw said. "It's going to be sitting there vacant."
Budget constraints also have forced Bradshaw to cut back on the number of new patrol cars he intended to buy to replace older models; neighborhood patrols will be cut back; and school resource officers may be moved out of schools and given different assignments.
Money to increase the agency's training budget and order additional body armor was also cut from next year's budget.
Bradshaw called the increase in the proposed $426 million spending plan - a $41.8 million bump from this year - "the bare minimum." Most of the new money requested will go to pay for deputies' salaries and benefits agreed to in a collective bargaining agreement signed with the county's Police Benevolent Association in August.
Bradshaw said the hiring freeze has been in place since March and "will go on until there's some type of relief given to the counties. It's all up in the air" in Tallahassee.
"The bottom line is I tried to make my budget reflect what it takes for this agency to keep the people safe," Bradshaw said.
The union contract increased deputies' starting salary by 12 percent to $42,300, raising the office's salary rank from 13th to fifth among county agencies.
Higher pay is a key tool to lure new deputies to the sheriff's office.
Recent job candidates who signed up to participate in the sheriff's office law enforcement academy sponsorship program have been told the department won't pick up the cost, as it has previously. Between 50 and 100 candidates are affected, Bradshaw said.
Jupiter resident Ronnie Shand submitted an application to join the program last September. He went through the pre-academy physical and psychological testing and was told he would enter the academy in January. But then everything was put on hold.
He was then told he would have to pay $3,500 to attend the academy. A mechanical engineer with Lockheed Martin who also holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice, Shand until recently volunteered in the sheriff's North Palm Beach district and was ready for a career change - one that came with a significant pay cut.
"I'm just upset by the fact that when I applied, they didn't keep us updated on what was happening," Shand said. "They made me waste six months of my life."
Shand said he would have applied to other police agencies had he known earlier that the sheriff's office wouldn't sponsor the academy and that a hiring freeze was being considered.
The county's other large public safety agency is also being affected by the budget crunch.
Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue Chief Herman Brice announced the department will delay hiring its July recruitment class, which included about 30 people, until the fall, because of the unresolved tax reform debate in the capital.
State lawmakers will attempt to reach a consensus on property taxes and government spending during a special session that begins June 12.