Title
Receive the Sheriff's Office Fiscal Year (FY) 2014-15 financial status report.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors' Budget Committee to receive the Sheriff's Office Fiscal Year (FY) 2014-15 financial status report.
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
When the current administration took the office, it was reported that the Sheriff's budget would overrun by approximately $5.2 million, $3.7 million in salaries and benefits and $1.5 million in services and supplies if the spending pattern would have been continued.
Between July 2013 and December 2014, 59 employees were hired. Of 59 employees, 30 were recruits who needed to attend six-month police academy and five were hired as Deputy Sheriffs. Out of 30 recruits, five resigned or were terminated within a year. During the same time period, a total of 25 employees were separated from the employment. Of the 25 employees, 21 were safety employees and four professional staff. The annual salaries and benefit costs for the net 34 additional employees are estimated at $3.5 million.
The FY 2014-15 is the year with the lowest vacancies and the highest number of employees who are full-time but not able to perform the job they are hired for. By filling positions mostly with recruits, there were not much salary savings realized and at the same time the overtime keeps going up. In addition, due to the administration change and increased number of retirements would be resulted in significant unbudgeted payouts of approximately $600,000. For these reasons it is expected that the Sheriff's Office needs approximately $1.6 million additional appropriations in salary and benefit accounts. Meantime the new administration has implemented various overtime saving measures including changing the patrol deputies' shift from 10-hour shift to 12-hour shift effective March 7, 2015 and limiting overtime based special teams trainings.
At the beginning of August 2014, the Sheriff's Office a...
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