If Cayuga County’s 2024 proposed budget is approved, the sheriff’s office would see a 14% increase in funding.
Sheriff Brian Schenck told Finger Lakes News Radio, the approximately $19.5 million was a difficult but necessary thing to ask for.
“I recognize the burden that taxpayers have in our community,” Schenck said, “and are tax base isn’t growing, but unfortunately our public safety needs are and we do have to address those.”
He said the majority of the costs come from salaries and benefits as the sheriff’s office needs to keep qualified people with the sheriff’s office.
“That’s really what drives the majority of the costs of our budget,” the sheriff added. It’s really labor costs. So, it’s been difficult trying to attract and retain staff and we have to make sure that we’re competitive when we look at surrounding agencies and certainly agencies right here in our own community.”
Aside from an increase in salaries and benefits, part of the cost comes from the need to replace its aging vehicle fleet, including the purchase of a new boat. The sheriff’s office currently has four boats, three from 2007 and one from 2012. Three boats are kept at lakes year-round – one at Lake Ontario, one at Owasco Lake, and one at Cayuga Lake. The fourth is kept in reserve in case needed elsewhere.
$100,000 has been allocated to replace one of the boats from 2007 with New York matching up to an additional $100,000 through grant funding.
“The last couple of years, I’ve tried to propose purchasing a new boat and I did again this year,” Schenck continued. It’s something that we can’t just continue kicking the can down the road if we’re going to provide public safety services on our lakes and waterways.”
An uptick in the number of transports to and from the jail is also necessitating the replacement of two transport vehicles.
Three new hires will also be made if the budget is adopted. A deputy will work with the civil division to do work currently being handled by road patrol deputies; a detective will oversee the threat assessment team – helping to prevent violent crimes such as active shooters, and a clerk will act as a liaison between the mental health and medical divisions within the jail.
The Public Safety Building and Jail was built in 1990 with an addition put on around 2000. The sheriff said the building is showing its age.
“We’ve got roofs and doors and concrete sidewalks that are really getting to a point where they have to be replaced and repaired, and, unfortunately, that costs a lot of money and with inflation, these costs keep rising,” said Schenck.
ARPA funding will be used to cover the replacement of part of the jail’s roof, thus not affecting the budget.
Another challenge affecting the budget is a loss of board-in revenue. The jail houses federally incarcerated individuals whose cases are being adjudicated in Syracuse Federal Court for the US Marshals Service, thus generating revenue. With more people being housed at the jail for offenses committed in the county, there is less room to hold others for the Marshals.
“That’s just another issue we have with the large number of people we’ve seen being housed in our facility locally.” said the sheriff. “That’s put pressure on us not to be able to generate as much revenue as we have in the past, so that’s another thing that’s driving up the costs in our budget; it’s another difficult challenge that we’re dealing with.”
The County Legislature is expected to vote on whether or not to adopt its proposed 2024 budget later this month.
