Law enforcement agencies running up massive overtime tabs in the communities they serve is far from a new story in California. But one governing body is now taking aggressive measures to combat it.
In Santa Barbara County, the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously last week to add increased oversight to the sheriff’s budget, including mandatory monthly reporting on overtime allocations.
The step is not only seemingly overdue but also necessary for the county to attempt to remain fiscally solvent. The sheriff’s office paid out $21 million in overtime last year — with the top overtime earner making $170,000 in overtime on top of a base salary that was $103,000, according a recent report in the Santa Barbara Independent on the county’s audit…