SOMERSET COUNTY, MD - The Somerset County Sheriff’s Office told WBOC that Commissioners have decided to delay a decision on its requested salary increase until the summer.
Sheriff Ronald Howard said the department is currently short six deputies and would be forced to eliminate 24/7 coverage if just two more are lost. The Sheriff’s Office is asking Somerset County leaders to approve a nearly $20,000 increase in base pay to make them more competitive with other agencies.
County commissioners discussed personnel matters in closed session during their meeting on Tuesday afternoon. Interim County Administrator Ernest Leatherbury called Sheriff Howard afterward. Howard said he was informed that a decision on his request would be delayed until the summer, when commissioners are required to vote on a budget for the Sheriff’s Office to go into effect on July 1.
"If right now, every deputy that had an application in with another agency, if they all called at one time, the doors close,” Lieutenant Ray Johns said.
Somerset has already lost one 2-year deputy to ICE, with two more who have indicated they will accept positions if offered. Another four deputies have applied to other agencies, citing better pay and career opportunities as their reason for wanting to move on.
The Sheriff’s Office submitted two proposed pay scale increases. The first would raise the salary from $52,438 to $70,000 at an annual cost of $785,057 to the county. The second, more conservative proposal would raise the base pay to $65,000 and cost the county an estimated $561,542 each year.
In addition to the substantial pay increase, the Sheriff’s Office requested the addition of a new rank to the pay scale, an 84-hour pay period and more incentives.
"There’s currently shifts that have one person on or two and they're working a 12-hour shift supporting 25,000 people by themselves,” Johns said.
Reassigning school resource officers to road patrol, reducing 24-hour coverage to 5 days a week, and asking other law enforcement agencies in the county for assistance are temporary solutions that may be on the horizon.
Interim County Administrator Ernest Leatherbury issued the following statement to WBOC on Wednesday:
"The requested increase is significant, and as we approach the time to begin preparing the FY27 budget cycle, we will consider the Sheriff's request and work with him for a fiscally sustainable solution."