Sheriff Asks Commission to Restore Funding
From ClayToday.biz
Quote:
(Clay County Sheriff Rick Beseler submitted the following letter.)
As Sheriff of Clay County, I am very proud of the work CCSO has done both operationally and financially for the past seven (7) years. But it might surprise many to know that even though most costs have risen in the last seven years, as it stands today, the approved 2012 operating budget for CCSO, excluding employee health insurance, is basically the same as the first budget I submitted as Clay County Sheriff in 2005 of $36,800,000. I don’t know of many law enforcement agencies that can say that.
On September 27, 2011, the Clay County Board of County Commissioners voted to increase the millage but, in a separate vote, cut the Sheriff’s Office budget by $2.5 million.
During the years between 2005 and today, all agency cost increases were absorbed through innovative programs, downsizing, outsourcing, civilianizing and volunteerism. Those increases are familiar to all Clay County citizens in our personal lives when we pay for food, fuel and doctor visits. The Sheriff’s Office faces those same increases on a larger scale dealing with inmate food and medical care, insurance and fleet fuel costs. All unfunded mandates from the State of Florida have been absorbed, most notably those related to monitoring sexual offenders and predators. Raises for employees in 2005 and 2006 are also included in that number. CCSO employees have not had raises since October 2007 but did have their salaries reduced by 3% this year by the State Legislature.
During that same period of time every effort was made to save money all year so that a cash carry forward of unused money could be used as a reserve account to roll forward into the next year’s budget. Each year that cash carry forward averaged over $1 million. No “use it or lose it” end of year spending sprees ever occurred out of respect for the taxpayers’ money. Since law enforcement has many unknowns each year, such as a natural disaster or a major crime that taxes our manpower resources and requires massive overtime expenses, a built-in reserve is a necessity. That reserve is now gone and, with it, the ability to ensure proper and necessary staffing in the event of a catastrophic occurrence.
Clay County is one of the safest communities in Northeast Florida and when crimes do happen the offenders are twice as likely to be caught here than the state’s average because of CCSO’s 44 percent crime clearance rate. We can’t continue to deliver this kind of top rate service, however, when adequate funding is not available.
The first responsibility of government is to protect its citizens; all else is secondary. I urge the Clay County Board of County Commissioners to restore adequate funding to its law enforcement agency so that the outstanding men and women of CCSO can continue to keep Clay County one of the safest in the country.
