Five months into the fiscal year, El Paso County spent nearly half of its public safety budget, largely driven by overtime costs for jail staffing by the Sheriff’s Office. The spending has prompted a special Commissioners Court meeting Thursday to discuss the department’s budget.
Sheriff Oscar Ugarte, who took office in January 2025, said he has had to rely on overtime to adequately staff the county’s two jails during his first year and a half in office because the county has not allowed for additional staffing – concerns he said he has raised with commissioners since last year.
“I (previously) mentioned to the Commissioners Court that, on paper, our staffing tables look adequate, right? So, if you look right now, I have no detention officer positions available, but if you look at our schedules, every day, we are using overtime hours paying our detention staff to build positions,” Ugarte said…