MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. — A clash over the cost to secure schools in Martin County is heating up.
This is a story that WPTV first reported on earlier this month after the Martin County School District balked at the sheriff's office's request for an additional $2.1 million to fund the school resource officer (SRO) program.
WATCH BELOW: School District, sheriff's office battle over school security costs
"They're proposing a 63% increase, and that hit us from out of left field a little bit," school district spokesman Derek Lowe told WPTV earlier this month.
This rift heated up Thursday night after the sheriff's office posted on Facebook that the agency could not continue to absorb a "disproportionate share of the cost" to the SRO program.
"I have asked the School District to pay a fair and equitable share moving forward—an amount totaling less than 1% of their annual $582 million budget to continue this proven and effective program," Sheriff John Budensiek said in the post.
Because of the battle over costs, the sheriff said that the school district is exploring "less expensive, non-law enforcement options" for school security.
"This presents safety and operational challenges," Budensiek said. "I strongly believe our professional, well-trained deputies are the best option to keep our schools safe."
Despite the rift, the sheriff said that he remained hopeful that the school district and his agency could work out their differences and continue their partnership.
SCHOOL DISTRICT PUSHES BACK
Following the post by the sheriff's office, the school district released a lengthy statement late Thursday night.
The statement said the district has long valued the presence of SROs on campus. However, the sheriff's office's "non-negotiable demand" — a 63% increase from $3,282,597 to $5,350,000 — was an "unprecedented spike".
"Despite being told the contract terms were non-negotiable, the District responded with a responsible counteroffer of $4,000,000—one that maintained school safety coverage while removing unexplained costs for top-level positions that had never existed within the program in prior years and requesting documentation for overtime expenses," the school district's statement said. "MCSO rejected this counteroffer outright."
The district called the sheriff's office's "non-negotiable" demands a request that doesn't evoke partnership.
"Effective partnerships are built on mutual problem-solving, open dialogue, and shared responsibility," the school district's statement said. "Instead, the District has been handed an ultimatum that would force $2,067,403 in new costs onto our operating budget—diverting money away from student programs, faculty and staff salaries, and direct educational services."
The district said it remains committed to ensuring the safety of students and staff, but in a manner that is fiscally responsible to taxpayers.
They also pushed back on the notion that the costs proposed by the sheriff's office are "less than 1%" of the district's $583 million budget.
"While this narrative is an attention grabber, it is wholly misleading," the district's statement said. "Most of our budget is categorically restricted — earmarked by state and federal law for transportation, food services, capital projects, or other specific uses. Very little of it is available for discretionary operational spending.
The school district said it will continue to "negotiate in good faith" to ensure student safety within its available resources.
The current SRO contract between the sheriff's office and the school district expires at the end of June.
Read the school district's full statement below:
"The Martin County School District remains deeply committed to ensuring the safety of every student and staff member. We have long valued the presence of trained school resource officers (SROs) on our campuses and appreciate our partnership with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO).
Unfortunately, our efforts to continue this partnership in a fiscally responsible, transparent and collaborative manner in the upcoming school year have been met with a non-negotiable demand from MCSO: a 63% increase in the cost of our SRO contract, from $3,282,597 to $5,350,000. This represents an unprecedented spike, far beyond any prior discussions between the agencies since the inception of the program under Sheriff William D. Snyder.
Despite being told the contract terms were non-negotiable, the District responded with a responsible counteroffer of $4,000,000—one that maintained school safety coverage while removing unexplained costs for top-level positions that had never existed within the program in prior years and requesting documentation for overtime expenses. MCSO rejected this counteroffer outright.
Let us be clear: “Non-negotiable” is not partnership. Effective partnerships are built on mutual problem-solving, open dialogue, and shared responsibility. Instead, the District has been handed an ultimatum that would force $2,067,403 in new costs onto our operating budget—diverting money away from student programs, faculty and staff salaries, and direct educational services. We continue to hold that it is appropriate and fiscally responsible to seek context and validation of costs to be fully transparent to the taxpayers, who ultimately foot the bill.
To summarize:
- This year, the District paid $3,282,597 for SRO services.
- Under MCSO’s demand, the District will need to budget $5,350,000 for SRO services next school year.
- Florida issues the District a Safe Schools Allocation to offset costs associated with required school safety programs. Over the last four years, our allocation has increased from $1,102,372 (2021-2022 school year) to $1,667,144 (current 2024-2025 school year).
The District's complete budget books for the last four school years are linked for reference:
The non-negotiable increase from MCSO includes:
- The addition of a third sergeant and a lieutenant—costs the District never requested and that are unrelated to our actual on campus coverage needs.
- Two “float deputies”, which have not been established as necessary.
- A proposal that does not delineate separate costs for 9 sites that are either private or charter schools, neither of which are the District’s responsibility to fund.
- A newly introduced $650,000 charge for overtime, even though each SRO is already under a 12-month contract to serve District-operated schools while the academic year covers only 10 months.
In public statements, MCSO has attempted to minimize the impact by stating this increase represents “less than 1%” of the District’s $583 million budget. While this narrative is an attention grabber, it is wholly misleading. Most of our budget is categorically restricted—earmarked by state and federal law for transportation, food services, capital projects, or other specific uses. Very little of it is available for discretionary operational spending. The District’s operating funds are already under immense pressure as we work to maintain competitive salaries for our deeply valued faculty and staff, support employee benefits (including those for many of our retirees as has been a recent topic of attention), expand academic opportunities, and support the growing needs of our students, all while facing the enrollment challenges shared by many school districts that result in decreased state funding.
It's important for our community to understand another key distinction:
Florida law provides sheriffs with a unique mechanism to secure funding for safe school programs – the local county commission. If a sheriff’s request for funding is denied by the county commission, they may appeal directly to the Administration Commission (Governor and Florida Cabinet) for approval (see Section 30.49(4), Florida Statutes). School districts have no such option. We must meet our statutory safe-school obligations through state-determined, designated funding and negotiated agreements. As of this writing, the District is unaware of any public request MCSO has made to the Martin County Board of County Commissioners related to funding for the SRO program. Instead, MCSO is attempting to shift the entire financial burden—more than half a million dollars in overtime alone, along with the cost of additional top brass—onto the District and, by extension, our employees and families.
This is not a question of whether the District supports and values school safety or believes that MCSO is the best in the business when it comes to this topic. We unequivocally do. It is a question of governance, fiscal responsibility, and whether the District should unilaterally accept an unprecedented and unexpected ultimatum without requesting explanations and documentation that can be shared with the public, as we continue to meet our expectations of transparency and full disclosure.
The District remains ready and willing to negotiate in good faith to ensure student safety within our available resources. We are seeking a collaborative solution to a shared challenge – the protection of our children and schools.
We will continue to advocate for a solution that protects both our students and the core mission of public education in Martin County."
