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Pinellas sheriff says budget increase would go to new pay plan

 
“I want to assure you that it is all 100 percent needs, not wants.”
Bob Gualtieri, 
Pinellas County sheriff
“I want to assure you that it is all 100 percent needs, not wants.” Bob Gualtieri, Pinellas County sheriff
Published May 22, 2015

CLEARWATER — Eager to finish a redesigned pay plan for his employees and replace aging vehicles and radios, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gual­tieri made his pitch Thursday for $20.6 million more than the spending target set by the county's budget office.

Commissioners expected a big request from Gualtieri for 2016, mostly to finish the pay plan started in the current fiscal year to make the Sheriff's Office more competitive with surrounding agencies. Gualtieri said he needs $12.4 million to finish the plan.

The budget also includes $5.4 million to replace aging vehicles and $5.2 million for new portable radios, computer servers and network upgrades, among other pressing needs, Gualtieri told commissioners at a workshop.

"I want to assure you that it is all 100 percent needs, not wants," said Gualtieri, reprising a phrase he used last year, when the board gave him $10.7 million above his target. That was mostly for the first part of the pay plan with the understanding he would be back this year seeking funds to finish the job.

The sheriff's request accounts for a majority of the nearly $46 million in countywide funding requests commissioners must consider this year. They will have about $14 million in additional general fund revenue to work with, thanks to a roughly 6 percent increase in property values, county Administrator Mark Woodard said. He added that some of the requests could be paid for using other sources, such as Penny for Pinellas revenue. County staffers are building the budget assuming no change in the millage rate.

Among the more pressing needs are $1.6 million for a Microsoft software licensing agreement for business technology services and about $800,000 for new voting equipment for Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark. Commissioners also have voiced strong support for a $1 million pilot program focused on the most frequent users of the county's mental health services.

Asked by commissioners for the minimum extra amount he needs to finish the pay plan, Gualtieri said he could get by with $6 million. "It will mean moving things around, robbing Peter to pay Paul, but not to the point where we can't operate," he said.

Gualtieri's net request to the county's general fund for 2016 is a little more than $246 million.

Gualtieri said he must finish the salary plan for an agency plagued by low morale and high attrition rates as deputies leave for better-paying agencies that provide predictable raises based on experience. After going five years without pay raises during the recession, many of the sheriff's more experienced employees are paid the same as colleagues with less seniority.

With the extra money approved last year, Gualtieri has increased the starting salary for deputies to $45,500 from $41,284. He also adjusted pay for deputies with two to five years' experience, and moved those with more than 20 years to the top salary grade of $70,622. Sergeants and lieutenants were also placed in the proper pay grade.

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"It's made a huge difference in the agency," he said.

He noted that the pay plan was a factor in successful contract negotiations with the Suncoast Police Benevolent Association, the union that represents deputies. The contract calls for the rest of pay plan, which largely focuses on deputies with five to 19 years of experience, to be implemented in 2016.

Commissioners said they are willing to give Gualtieri at least $6 million to get it done.

"We gave him our word to do what we could this year, and there's $6 million there to do that without a millage increase," Chairman John Morroni said.

Contact Tony Marrero at tmarrero@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8779. Follow @tmarrerotimes.