Thursday St Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara presented his first proposed budget to the Board of County Commissioners.
Sheriff Mascara asked for a 6.2-million dollar increase next year, stating that it’s time for larger raises for his deputies and better starting pay for new employees.
The sheriff stated that for the first time during his tenure, employees are transferring out of his department for better pay elsewhere.
The employees have gotten 3-percent raises in each of the past three years, which County Administrator Howard Tipton said was a good sign given the economic troubles of the county. He added that they hope to avoid raising taxes this year, and are asking all departments to stay flat in their proposed budgets.
Further discussions were planned for Tuesday.
