El Paso County commissioners are set to consider creating up to 40 new unfunded detention officer positions per fiscal year for the Sheriff’s Office, a move sheriff’s officials say is aimed at improving staffing flexibility without increasing the number of funded jobs.
According to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, the proposed unfunded detention officer positions “are intended to provide flexibility for staffing management and do not represent an increase in funded positions.”
The Sheriff’s Office said the positions would primarily be used to account for detention officers who are selected to attend a Peace Officer Academy and then transition into commissioned roles.
Additionally, the sheriff’s office said the proposal aims to help the agency maintain its current authorized detention staffing levels and avoid delays in the hiring process.
However, the sheriff’s office said that any use of the unfunded positions would depend on available salary savings within the Sheriff’s Office budget and the number of Peace Officer Academies conducted each fiscal year.
Commissioners are expected to discuss the proposal and take action next week.
Meanwhile, the proposed item comes after a March budget presentation to commissioners showed the county’s public safety sector, which includes the sheriff’s office, had spent about 47 percent of its budget through February, about five months into the fiscal year.
Overtime spending was cited as one of the driving concerns.
While county leaders have said staffing at the Sheriff’s Office is up to national standards and that this is the first year the jails have no detention officer vacancies, Sheriff Oscar Ugarte previously said in a statement that “while current reports may indicate that staffing tables are ‘full’ with no vacancies, those tables have not been updated in several years to reflect the significant growth across El Paso County.”
He added, “Our goal is not only to meet minimum standards on paper, but to ensure we have the personnel necessary to operate safely, effectively, and sustainably.”
In response to the sheriff’s budget concerns, commissioners in April approved a formal letter asking for a discussion on how to fix the spending gap, warning that the department is spending through its budget too quickly.
In a previous statement following the approved formal letter, county leadership said, “We have asked the Sheriff’s Office to prioritize its requests, with a primary focus on core, statutorily required functions such as detention operations, while also providing context for initiatives that, while valuable, extend beyond those requirements.”
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