06-02-2009, 03:21 PM
Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott's proposed $157 million budget is a $3.6 million cut from last year - the first time a Lee sheriff has offered to trim his budget.
Scott's proposal, submitted Monday to Lee County commissioners, spells out a request for more help in court operations to — $8.1 million, up from $6.3 million, but a cut in the corrections budget, which is down from $58.4 million to $53.6 million.
A decrease in property values, estimated at 24.8 percent for Lee, has required the county to slash budgets from last year because of expected shrinking revenues.
According to The News-Press archives, the sheriff's $157 million budget, if approved, would be the lowest since the 2007-08 budget, which was about $157.7 million. The 2008-09 approved budget was the highest, at $160.6 million.
Sheriff's Sgt. Larry King said a major difference between last year's budget and this year's proposed budget is 28 approved corrections positions that were never filled. Because of a sharp decrease in jail population and the opening Monday of the new justice center tower, fewer corrections officers and more court officers are needed, King said.
In the 2008-09 approved budget, the sheriff's office had 1,585 authorized positions, making it the largest employer under the board of county commissioners.
The proposal doesn't include loss of personnel, but rather a transfer of corrections officers to court operations, King said.
"Some of these people have been transferred to court operations," he said. "No one's being let go - we're not firing anyone."
He said there won't be a change in programs or services to Lee County residents. The proposal calls for fewer expenditures on vehicles or other equipment costing more than $1,000 - a little more than $1 million in cuts.
"This is the budget of our needs," King said. "It's what we need to provide core-level services."
Court system
Those core-level services include safety in the new 10-story, 17-courtroom justice center tower.
The officers moved from corrections to court operations are part of a new unit that handles the transfer of inmates from the jail to the courthouse. Typically, the bailiffs in any given courtroom are responsible for moving inmates from a neighboring holding cell into the courtroom and making sure inmates have the proper paperwork once they leave.
Maj. Thomas Ellegood, who oversees the corrections bureau, has said the new unit will have more of those responsibilities so that in-courtroom bailiffs can focus mostly on courtroom security.
The Lee County Jail has also seen a drop in inmates - 16 percent from April 2008 to April 2009. Last April, the average daily population at the jail was 2,250 inmates, while just two months ago the average was 1,896, or 354 fewer people, according to Sgt. David Velez. That has led to the structuring of the sheriff's budget.
Velez said the court's felony case system - started in January 2008 - could be a reason fewer inmates are appearing in the jail facilities.
According to a report released in February, there was a 42 percent reduction in felony cases older than 180 days, meaning defendants made fewer court appearances and spent less time in the Lee County Jail before trial from January 2008 to this January. The system gives felony judges an increased ability to hold attorneys accountable with time limits on cases.
"I would definitely attribute it to that," Velez said of the jail decrease.
Bandwagon
Scott isn't alone among top law enforcement officers across the state cutting their funding.
In Collier County, Sheriff Kevin Rambosk has proposed about a $150 million budget, down almost $4.5 million from last year's approved budget. In Polk County - whose population of 580,000 is close to Lee's estimated 593,000, according to 2008 U.S. Census estimates - Sheriff Grady Judd has proposed a budget of $131,998,326, down about $6,600 from last year's adopted budget.
Scott wasn't available for an interview, but said in a letter to commissioners the budget reflects no pay or cost-of-living increases and reflects the need for help in the justice center tower.
"With this time of economic uncertainty all local governments are facing, we have worked diligently with the County Commissioners and County Administrators to target our proposed request for Law Enforcement under the goal that was set by the Board," Scott wrote.
Commissioner Frank Mann said it's too early to say whether the sheriff's cuts are sufficient. But, he said, no department will be off-limits. Commissioners will have meetings in the coming months to discuss department budgets.
"I'm very pleased at the direction of the sheriff's office," Mann said. "But I don't know if it's going to be enough. Clearly, everyone's going to have to look hard. Public safety is going to be the place everyone looks to cut last."
Scott's proposal, submitted Monday to Lee County commissioners, spells out a request for more help in court operations to — $8.1 million, up from $6.3 million, but a cut in the corrections budget, which is down from $58.4 million to $53.6 million.
A decrease in property values, estimated at 24.8 percent for Lee, has required the county to slash budgets from last year because of expected shrinking revenues.
According to The News-Press archives, the sheriff's $157 million budget, if approved, would be the lowest since the 2007-08 budget, which was about $157.7 million. The 2008-09 approved budget was the highest, at $160.6 million.
Sheriff's Sgt. Larry King said a major difference between last year's budget and this year's proposed budget is 28 approved corrections positions that were never filled. Because of a sharp decrease in jail population and the opening Monday of the new justice center tower, fewer corrections officers and more court officers are needed, King said.
In the 2008-09 approved budget, the sheriff's office had 1,585 authorized positions, making it the largest employer under the board of county commissioners.
The proposal doesn't include loss of personnel, but rather a transfer of corrections officers to court operations, King said.
"Some of these people have been transferred to court operations," he said. "No one's being let go - we're not firing anyone."
He said there won't be a change in programs or services to Lee County residents. The proposal calls for fewer expenditures on vehicles or other equipment costing more than $1,000 - a little more than $1 million in cuts.
"This is the budget of our needs," King said. "It's what we need to provide core-level services."
Court system
Those core-level services include safety in the new 10-story, 17-courtroom justice center tower.
The officers moved from corrections to court operations are part of a new unit that handles the transfer of inmates from the jail to the courthouse. Typically, the bailiffs in any given courtroom are responsible for moving inmates from a neighboring holding cell into the courtroom and making sure inmates have the proper paperwork once they leave.
Maj. Thomas Ellegood, who oversees the corrections bureau, has said the new unit will have more of those responsibilities so that in-courtroom bailiffs can focus mostly on courtroom security.
The Lee County Jail has also seen a drop in inmates - 16 percent from April 2008 to April 2009. Last April, the average daily population at the jail was 2,250 inmates, while just two months ago the average was 1,896, or 354 fewer people, according to Sgt. David Velez. That has led to the structuring of the sheriff's budget.
Velez said the court's felony case system - started in January 2008 - could be a reason fewer inmates are appearing in the jail facilities.
According to a report released in February, there was a 42 percent reduction in felony cases older than 180 days, meaning defendants made fewer court appearances and spent less time in the Lee County Jail before trial from January 2008 to this January. The system gives felony judges an increased ability to hold attorneys accountable with time limits on cases.
"I would definitely attribute it to that," Velez said of the jail decrease.
Bandwagon
Scott isn't alone among top law enforcement officers across the state cutting their funding.
In Collier County, Sheriff Kevin Rambosk has proposed about a $150 million budget, down almost $4.5 million from last year's approved budget. In Polk County - whose population of 580,000 is close to Lee's estimated 593,000, according to 2008 U.S. Census estimates - Sheriff Grady Judd has proposed a budget of $131,998,326, down about $6,600 from last year's adopted budget.
Scott wasn't available for an interview, but said in a letter to commissioners the budget reflects no pay or cost-of-living increases and reflects the need for help in the justice center tower.
"With this time of economic uncertainty all local governments are facing, we have worked diligently with the County Commissioners and County Administrators to target our proposed request for Law Enforcement under the goal that was set by the Board," Scott wrote.
Commissioner Frank Mann said it's too early to say whether the sheriff's cuts are sufficient. But, he said, no department will be off-limits. Commissioners will have meetings in the coming months to discuss department budgets.
"I'm very pleased at the direction of the sheriff's office," Mann said. "But I don't know if it's going to be enough. Clearly, everyone's going to have to look hard. Public safety is going to be the place everyone looks to cut last."