Sheriff flags vacancy math, rising overtime and tech costs; proposes targeted adjustments and long‑term forensic investments

Sheriff Jerry Sheridan and CFO Jim Prindeville presented the Sheriff's Office FY2027 outlook and above‑base priorities, telling supervisors that falling civilian vacancy rates combined with persistent sworn vacancies have produced an unfavorable gap between budgeted vacancy savings and actual payroll costs.

Prindeville said the department manages a near‑$1 billion portfolio and faces roughly $20 million in annual technology and maintenance agreements; he identified about $1.7M of license/maintenance cost increases and requested $1.7M for escalating tech fees and a new CAD/RMS integration effort. The sheriff asked the board to reduce the budgeted vacancy savings assumption to 8.5%—an adjustment he estimated would require a $5.3M budget realignment to cover salaries now in payroll but not fully funded by the vacancy assumption.

Sheriff Sheridan said deputy vacancy counts remain high (roughly 170 sworn vacancies) even as civilian vacancies have been decreasing, leaving overtime elevated; he estimated a potential mid‑year shortfall of $5M without adjustments. The Sheriff highlighted investigative needs (e.g., a Faro 3‑D crime‑scene scanner), fleet equipment, and training center upgrades in a $900K package and described longer‑term priorities—a county forensic DNA lab (to avoid multimonth reliance on external labs) and a replacement helicopter—to improve responsiveness and evidence turnaround.

Supervisors asked about forecasting changes after pay raises, recruitment pipeline timelines and whether overtime increases were anticipated; the sheriff and CFO said academy and field training lags (about a year from hire to independent patrol) mean overtime pressure can persist while new hires ramp. County management and budget staff agreed to work with the Sheriffoffice to refine mid‑year and FY2027 adjustments.