Sheriff gets OK on reduced request on stimulus funds for more deputies

Sheriff Paul Babeu’s scaled-back proposal to seek federal funds for more deputies was approved by the Pinal County Board of Supervisors on Friday, a week after the original request was denied.

The revised proposal, which passed on a 3-0 vote, asked to apply for 15 positions, half of the number the sheriff’s office originally sought, through the Community Oriented Policing Services Hiring Recovery Program. The federal grant, if awarded, would pay for the deputies’ salary and benefits for three years, with the county assuming a projected annual cost of $1.1 million in the fourth year.

Spokeswoman Lt. Tamatha Villar said the sheriff’s office was pleased by the board’s vote but was still a little disappointed about reducing the number of deputies on the request.

“It’s unfortunate that we weren’t approved in the first place for the 30 positions. We obviously are in serious need of those positions,” she said. However, “Any new bodies we can get on the street are better than none.”

The initial request for 30 deputies was shot down by the board last week on concerns that the county, which is facing bleak economic forecasts and recently announced layoffs in June, couldn’t afford to pay the $2.3 million needed to keep the deputies in the fourth year once the federal funding ends (see related story).

Villar said the money would go toward hiring 10 new patrol officers and rehiring five deputies with the commercial vehicle unit, which is losing its funding from a different federal grant in September.

The sheriff’s office has said it’s struggling to keep up with the county’s population growth and that it trails other counties in the per-capita number of law enforcement officials. Nationwide, the desired public safety staffing model is around two officers per thousand residents. Currently, the sheriff’s office has 213 sworn officers, which gives it a ratio of .6 deputies per thousand residents.

Villar said the Department of Justice, which administers the COPS hiring program, has told the sheriff’s office it will notify law enforcement agencies by October on the awarding of grant money.

“We’re excited to see what this has in store for us,” she said. “If we can get some more bodies out on the street, offer some relief to our deputies and increase the safety of the public, then I think we’re on top.”