The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office is projecting a nearly $6 million budget shortfall to close out the fiscal year, with Sheriff Oscar Ugarte saying most of the gap is tied to overtime needed to keep the county’s jails staffed.
Ugarte told county commissioners the office warned them about the projected shortfall in April.
“Most of that shortfall is because of overtime,” Ugarte said.
Sheriff’s Office working to reduce jail overtime. The Sheriff’s Office says overtime has been driven largely by staffing shortages at the county jails.
When required posts are left open because of vacancies, sick calls or vacation time, the office uses overtime to fill those positions.
At the Downtown Jail, the Sheriff’s Office provided an example of one 12-hour shift that included eight officers working overtime, four officers on vacation and four officers who had called in sick.
The office says it has since changed its staffing model at both jails in an effort to reduce overtime.
Sixteen detention officers have been moved from operations back to regular jail shifts. Operations staffing was reduced from 53 officers to 39, while some kitchen, clinic, information and security posts were also reduced.
Supervisors are also sending scheduled overtime officers home when staffing levels no longer require them.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, those changes have reduced overtime by nearly 43% at the Downtown Jail and nearly 45% at the jail annex.
Ugarte says the department currently has about 20 vacant positions, although that number can fluctuate.
Filling those positions can take months.
The hiring process includes a physical assessment, oral interview, background investigation, and polygraph.
Ugarte estimates the process can take six to seven months from application to academy.
The Sheriff also says retaining detention officers remains a challenge because some leave for other agencies that offer higher pay.
“They use this office as a stepping stone,” Ugarte said. “They get a little bit of experience. They apply for other local agencies, state agencies, or federal agencies that pay way more than us.”
Ugarte says the department has to balance reducing overtime with making sure remaining employees are not overworked.
“Do we want to reduce the amount of overtime? Yes,” Ugarte said. “But what about the work balance for my employees?”
While the Sheriff’s Office is working to reduce overtime at the jails, Ugarte is also asking commissioners to approve additional overtime funding for special operations during fiscal year 2027.
The proposed plan calls for about $356,000 in overtime funding for:
12 DWI operations
Six unplanned enforcement operations
Two large patrols at Red Sands
The funding would come from the operations contingency.
County commissioners are expected to hear the Sheriff’s Office presentation on jail operations, staffing and the budget during their meeting tomorrow.
The court is also expected to vote on the $356,000 special operations overtime request.
The main question will be whether the staffing changes made at the jails will be enough to keep overtime and the Sheriff’s Office budget under control while maintaining adequate staffing levels.
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