Seminole County Sheriff Dennis Lemma says his agency will shed hundreds of positions over roughly two and a half years as the county adjusts to Amendment 3, the measure that expands the homestead exemption, which voters approved on Nov. 3, WFTV reported Tuesday.
Lemma told the station that conversations about staffing were already underway a week after the vote. "There will be significant cuts in the hundreds," he said. He said he expects most of the reduction to come from leaving jobs empty when employees retire or leave, rather than replacing them.
His office said it is too early to say whether deputies will be among them, WFTV reported.
What the sheriff says could shrink
Lemma said he expects county commissioners to continue putting public safety first and that he will not make cuts that leave residents unsafe. He did say community events run by his office would likely be scaled back, from 10 to 15 a month to perhaps three to five.
He also named programs aimed at the causes of crime, including substance use treatment, mental health counseling and a peer support team, as vulnerable. "I'm not going to abandon those things," Lemma told WFTV, suggesting the work might be done by someone other than a paid government employee.
On Tuesday he gathered roughly 80 faith and community leaders for a discussion on young people's mental health, the station reported.
The county's budget math
Seminole County estimates the amendment will cut its property tax revenue by 27%, and leaders are now working out how to trim 20% of the services that property taxes pay for, WFTV reported. The county, which provides fire service in Winter Springs, said no Amendment 3 budget decisions have been made and that staff are building revenue projections ahead of formal budget talks in January.
"They're asking for tax cuts. We're going to give them tax cuts, but we've made no decisions on how we're going to fund things that have to be funded, that they expect to be funded," County Commission Chair Andria Herr told the station.
