Laura Young
ECB Publishing, Inc.
Sheriff Mac McNeill spoke to members of the Monticello-Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce at their monthly luncheon on Tuesday, Nov. 2. He gave an update on the $1.2 million grant that the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) recently received to upgrade their communications system to Florida's Statewide Law Enforcement Radio System (SLERS). The new system, McNeill explained, will make a big difference for the safety of county residents and the law enforcement officers who serve them. The SLERS radios can reach parts of the county where cell service may be unreliable. This improves officers' ability to remain in communication when in remote areas. Furthermore, during natural disasters such as hurricanes when communications systems may be temporarily down, SLERS is the very first one to be brought back up. McNeill thanked the commissioners and state representatives who put considerable effort into securing this funding from the state.
For his next topic, McNeill said that the JCSO is in very good shape with vehicles because the cost to the county has been offset with $900,000 of residual funds from the Florida Department of Justice.
Finally, McNeill expressed mixed emotions about Governor Ron DeSantis's recent push to raise salaries for state law enforcement officers. While McNeill is pleased that officers who work for state agencies may get a significant pay raise that they deserve, he is very concerned about the unintended effect such a hike could have on retaining officers in Jefferson County. If the proposal goes through, salaries at state agencies could be more than $20,000 higher than our county can afford to pay its deputies. This could entice local officers to leave the JCSO for higher paying positions in Tallahassee that are still within easy commuting distance. McNeill said that even though our county offers regular raises, an appealing quality of life and a quality work environment, some officers with families to raise may simply need substantially higher pay. He pointed out that historically our local law enforcement squads tend to serve as a good starting point for new officers, who then move on to other jobs in three to five years. This has been a predictable and manageable level of turnover, but if there suddenly are lots of significantly higher paying jobs nearby, it could create a personnel problem here. McNeill said that the Sheriff's Association will be discussing the potential effect of state agency raises on the 27 “fiscally constrained counties” and exploring ways that funding could be arranged to help offset potential pay gaps. He expressed confidence that “we will make it work, one way or another.”
During a wrap-up Q&A session, McNeill credited nearly all of the recent drug-related arrests to the JCSO's incredibly successful canine officer, Pepe. He also reported that JCSO just obtained $5,000 of equipment for Project Lifesaver, which fits at-risk individuals with a tracking bracelet or chip to assist with search and rescue in case they wander from home.
The luncheon agenda also included a business spotlight, which featured Tracie Fulford. Fulford recently bought Traditions Embroidery and gave it a new name, It's Personal. Located at 140 W. Washington St. in Monticello (on Courthouse Circle), the business specializes in embroidering names and logos on clothing as well as screen printing banners and signs. Fulford commented that as a small-town business, It's Personal often is able to give local customers a quicker turnaround on orders than they might find online.
The lunch, catered by Carlitos Way Food Truck, included smothered pork chops, yellow rice, spring salad and pumpkin spice cookies. Extra dessert was provided in the form of a birthday cake for Ron Cichon, who has turned 78. Happy birthday, Ron!
Chamber of Commerce members are reminded that instead of a monthly luncheon on Dec. 7, the Chamber will have its annual holiday party in the evening.
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