Commissioners Vote 5-2 Against More Funding

Commissioners struck down a $580,000 request from the local sheriff department.

Sheriff Gus Dicesari, with the support of commissioners Anita Shenuski and Raymond Laybourne, petitioned the county for eight new police cruisers and five additional deputies.

Dicesari feels these vehicles, with more than 150,000 miles on each of them, are unsafe and undependable. "It is getting too costly to maintain the older vehicles and they spend too much time in the repair shop. My deputies can’t keep driving these old vehicles. Something bad is going to happen”, he said.

Commission President Anne Chenn with the support of fellow commissioners Valerie Dawkins, Faith Ellis, Jose Gardoz and Roland Grauman are opposed to the sheriff's request. Chenn believes the county has no money left for funding. According to Chenn, the county has already reached its $127 million budget for the year. She feels that increased costs of employer health care, fuel and $30 million for a new prison contributed to the money shortfall.

Shenuski and Laybourne believe the overall shortage in funds has to do with the migrant workers who come to the county to work. "They are a problem for law enforcement, our schools and our health care system," Shenuski said. "We need to protect local residents from them." Chenn couldn't disagree more. "Those people who come here to work are descent, hardworking people," she said. "They add a great deal to the local economy and they pay taxes."

The commissioners estimate that there are around 5,000 migrant families now in the county working in agricultural, construction and service industry jobs.

Dicesari believes the commissioners are “shortchanging” the sheriff’s department to save money. “This is the first time in my 27 years as sheriff that the county hasn’t allocated money to the sheriff’s department to buy equipment,” he said. Despite Dicesari's complaints, commissioners voted 5-2 against his request.