Less than a year after county commissioners shot down Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony\u2019s request for a hefty increase in his agency\u2019s 2026 budget, the Sheriff\u2019s Office returned Thursday for a new funding request \u2014 this time with a heftier increase.<\/p>\n
BSO\u2019s funding request was pitched as an effort to boost the pay of thousands of deputies and support personnel who are constantly being lured by higher salaries offered by competing agencies in the region, said Undersheriff Steve Robson, speaking Thursday at a County Commission budget workshop.<\/p>\n
\u201cBSO is lowest paid of all agencies in Broward County,\u201d he said, citing an average $4,000 gap between deputies and officers with police departments in Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood. \u201cWe are just not competitive in the marketspace \u2026 Law enforcement (at BSO) has lost 689 employees in the last three years.\u201d More than half of those said they were seeking \u201cother opportunities,\u201d he said, suggesting inadequate pay was likely a major factor.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe attrition rate is just not sustainable,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are losing people literally every single week. BSO is not asking to be at the top. We\u2019re asking to be competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Commissioners expressed sympathy for the sheriff\u2019s position but signaled that this year, like last, is probably not the best time to expect a double-digit funding increase.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m looking at this and thinking, where are we going to get this money from?\u201d County Commissioner Nan Rich said.<\/p>\n
Robson and BSO Colonel Oscar Llerena defended the funding request by emphasizing the intent that deputies would be the greatest beneficiaries. Llerena added that this year\u2019s request would not have been as dramatic if last year\u2019s request had been granted.<\/p>\n
The Sheriff\u2019s Office accounted for $833.9 million of the $1.8 billion budget passed by the Broward County Commission<\/a> for the budget year that started Oct. 1, 2025, reflecting a 3.1%, $22.8 million increase. It had asked for a 9%, $79 million hike. Tony appealed to the state<\/a> to force the county to cough up more money, to no avail.<\/p>\n This year\u2019s request is for $937.4 million, an increase of $103.5 million.<\/p>\n Rich was not the only commissioner wondering how the county would pay for the hikes even if they somehow passed.<\/p>\n Commissioner Steve Geller, who has always been vocal about the inability to meet Tony\u2019s growing funding requests, said the county can\u2019t give BSO what it wants unless it makes crippling cuts elsewhere.<\/p>\n \u201cPublic safety is the single most important issue facing any local government,\u201d Geller said. \u201cBut it is not the only issue.\u00a0It may be our top priority, but it is not our only priority.\u201d<\/p>\n The county has to save money for parks, libraries, healthcare, technical services, homeless services, and other needs, Geller said. \u201cWe\u2019re not going to defund all of those to fund public safety.\u201d<\/p>\n Adding to the complexity of the issue is the uncertainty over whether the governor will succeed in his effort to eliminate property taxes for homesteaded residents<\/a>, a constitutional amendment set to be decided by voters in November. If that passes, officials estimate Broward will lose 19% of its ad valorum tax revenue, or $334 million.<\/p>\n Against that backdrop, commissioners wondered whether it would be responsible to promise BSO a funding stream it may not be able to deliver.<\/p>\n The next fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Last year, the county passed its budget in August.<\/p>\n