Sheriff warns 5% county cut could force boat-patrol suspension and reduce deputies

Lake County's sheriff told the board on Sept. 29 that a proposed 5% reduction to the sheriff's general fund — about $1.3 million — would require the department to forego hiring for vacant positions and scale back services including boat patrol.

"A reduction in the sheriff's office budget of 5% represents $1,300,000," the sheriff said during department remarks, adding that the cut equates to roughly 10 deputy positions the office would not be able to hire to fill vacancies. He said patrol staffing had fallen over the past decade (from 22 to 16 patrol deputies) and that his dispatch center worked 3,000 overtime hours in the 2025–26 fiscal year.

The sheriff warned the board that, if staffing continued to erode, the office would consider limiting responses to nonviolent misdemeanor calls and suspending routine boat-patrol operations between November and March, leaving lake responses to call-in only. He framed the issue as a morale and safety concern, saying deputies are "doing more with less" and that burnout could drive departures to agencies with better staffing and less overtime. The board acknowledged public-safety sensitivity while debating broader budget tradeoffs and the use of contingency funds.