Commissioners approve sheriff budget adjustments, plan strategic meeting on overtime and jail costs
June 19, 2026 | Ogemaw County, Michigan
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County administration and sheriff’s leadership detailed multiple budget adjustments for the sheriff’s office after a review found several line items underbudgeted, including phone service, inmate food and overtime.
Francine told the board she and sheriff’s staff had “gone line by line” to identify under‑ and over‑budget items and recommended targeted transfers to keep the office within the fiscal year. The undersheriff described steps to reallocate insurance refunds and a special one‑time line item of about $12,500 to address immediate shortfalls.
“Everything was comfortable within that looking at every line item,” the undersheriff said, summarizing the reconciliation. Commissioners expressed cautious approval but Commissioner Scott warned that frequent mid‑year transfers can erode public confidence in budgeting; Commissioner Sobork said budgets are living documents and praised improved communication between administration and the sheriff’s office.
A contested area was inmate meal billing: a credit‑card shutdown caused multiple weeks of invoices to post at once, producing unusually large single claims. The undersheriff said the jail will implement daily itemization of meal orders going forward and will reissue an RFP for meal service to generate competitive bids.
On staffing and scheduled overtime, administration and the sheriff agreed to a strategic planning meeting in late July to examine long‑range staffing models and reduce recurring overtime. Francine and law‑enforcement leaders will propose dates to board members.
The board took no formal long‑term staffing vote at this meeting but authorized the scheduling of working sessions to present options to the full board.
Francine told the board she and sheriff’s staff had “gone line by line” to identify under‑ and over‑budget items and recommended targeted transfers to keep the office within the fiscal year. The undersheriff described steps to reallocate insurance refunds and a special one‑time line item of about $12,500 to address immediate shortfalls.
“Everything was comfortable within that looking at every line item,” the undersheriff said, summarizing the reconciliation. Commissioners expressed cautious approval but Commissioner Scott warned that frequent mid‑year transfers can erode public confidence in budgeting; Commissioner Sobork said budgets are living documents and praised improved communication between administration and the sheriff’s office.
A contested area was inmate meal billing: a credit‑card shutdown caused multiple weeks of invoices to post at once, producing unusually large single claims. The undersheriff said the jail will implement daily itemization of meal orders going forward and will reissue an RFP for meal service to generate competitive bids.
On staffing and scheduled overtime, administration and the sheriff agreed to a strategic planning meeting in late July to examine long‑range staffing models and reduce recurring overtime. Francine and law‑enforcement leaders will propose dates to board members.
The board took no formal long‑term staffing vote at this meeting but authorized the scheduling of working sessions to present options to the full board.
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