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Walton County approves FY‑25 budget amendment to hire 25 detention officers for new jail
Summary
The commission amended the FY‑25 budget to add funding to hire 25 detention officers and purchase equipment as the county prepares to open its new jail, despite some dissent and discussion about timing and ethics of votes.
Walton County commissioners approved an FY‑25 budget amendment to add 25 detention officers for the county’s new jail and to buy associated uniforms and equipment, a change county leaders said was needed to staff the facility on schedule.
The sheriff requested the amendment to hire 25 officers immediately rather than waiting for the FY‑26 budget cycle; county staff said delaying the hires would create a hiring gap of two to three months and could delay the jail opening. The total requested amendment to the current fiscal year was $2,089,238.50, which county staff described as covering salaries and benefits (about $2,000,000), uniforms and vests ($58,200) and small equipment ($17,008.62 and 50 cents).
Commission discussion included questions about how the positions fit into the multi‑year staffing plan (the county has a total plan for 50 new hires across fiscal years), whether the requests would be integrated into FY‑26 and procedural concerns about abstentions. The clerk and county manager confirmed the positions approved for hiring this year would be incorporated into the next year’s budget so the hires are not duplicative.
A motion to approve the amendment passed after a roll call; the transcript records two votes of “no” from individual commissioners but the amendment carried. Commissioners and staff said the hires were necessary to meet the staffing requirement to open the jail.
The board also approved moving existing budgeted funds between line items to purchase vehicles for the sheriff’s department; that purchase used existing funds and was presented as a one‑time reallocation, with the FY‑26 budget adjusted accordingly.
