PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — WPTV is getting answers about why Palm Beach County commissioners voted to create a new funding mechanism for law enforcement and what it could eventually mean for roughly 700,000 residents living in unincorporated areas of the county.
After nearly an hour of debate, Palm Beach County commissioners voted 5-2 Tuesday to approve an ordinance creating a Law Enforcement Municipal Service Taxing Unit (MSTU) for unincorporated Palm Beach County.
WATCH BELOW: Palm Beach County approves MSTU framework for sheriff's services
According to the county agenda, the ordinance creates a law enforcement MSTU that could eventually be used as a dedicated funding source for sheriff's services beginning in Fiscal Year 2028.
County officials emphasized that Tuesday's vote does not establish a tax rate or immediately impose a new tax; instead, it creates the framework
The proposal sparked concerns from residents who questioned whether taxpayers had been given enough information about how an MSTU would work, what services it would fund and how costs would be calculated.
Lisa Johnson, a resident of The Acreage, pushed back.
"Our residents also deserve to know what we are already paying through county taxes and ITID assessments, what this MSTU would pay for and how the county will prevent duplication or taxpayers paying twice for the same services," Johnson said.
For those reasons, she urged commissioners to reject the proposal.
Other residents shared their perspective.
Pia Skoran, who lives in The Acreage, said she wasn't convinced residents would receive enough additional services to justify future costs.
"I do not understand how an MSTU would increase costs for unincorporated areas," Skoran said. "I've lived in The Acreage for 35 years. I have never seen a speed patrol in all that time."
Skoran described traffic, roadside vendors and other issues she believes receive little law enforcement attention.
Commissioners acknowledged the concerns but said the MSTU is largely about transparency and long-term financial planning.
The discussion turned repeatedly to growing Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office funding requests and the county's ability to review those expenses.
County officials noted that roughly 45% of Palm Beach County's population lives in unincorporated areas, or about 700,000 people.
When Palm Beach County Mayor Sara Baxter asked whether the county had studied where crime is occurring before pursuing the MSTU and what they would pay, staff said it had not.
County Administrator Joe Abruzzo explained that conversations about the MSTU began after state officials scrutinized county spending.
"When DOGE and the CFO came down," Abruzzo said, "we at OFMB started to have discussions about where the money really has been spent."
"It was clear factually that it wasn't the BCC that spent that extra tax dollar money; it was the sheriff's department."
Abruzzo said creating an MSTU would separate sheriff costs from the county's general budget and make spending easier for taxpayers to track.
"In levying an MSTU, it separates out a large portion of the sheriff's budget to show the taxpayers where the dollars are being spent," he said.
Abruzzo also told commissioners they have struggled to obtain detailed financial information from PBSO.
"MSTU also gave another avenue to potentially receive information that has not been furnished or shielded from the board," he said.
Commissioner Joel Flores, who said he requested the county explore the idea, argued the proposal is driven by budget realities.
"I think that the reason that we're at this juncture or at this point in time is because we've had to wrestle with our budget," Flores said. "One of those costs that we have not been able to get a handle on or to be able to manage is unfortunately our law enforcement PBSO contract."
Flores said sheriff funding has risen dramatically in recent years.
"Last year, if I recall correctly, we funded them over $134 million," Flores said. "This year the request was, I believe, another $100 (million) or very close to it and this year we brought them down to $77 (million). So when you do the math, it's over $200 million in two years."
According to discussions during recent budget hearings, commissioners have questioned PBSO funding increases and sought more detailed budget information before approving additional requests.
Flores repeatedly returned to what he called a lack of transparency.
"We asked for a sub-object category and we get a one-pager," Flores said. "It's a slap in the face. We are trying to grapple with the future of the county. Where are we heading? What can we do to best serve our residents, and we can't even make decisions because we don't have information."
Flores cited several large spending categories that commissioners said have not been sufficiently broken down:
"We're spending $84.4 million in overtime. Can you tell us where?"
"We have a line item called 'Other Services, $55.9 million.'"
"Rental and leases, $28.3 million. Operating supplies, $25.1 million."
"There is no way to manage this budget where we are today without really understanding where we're spending the money."
Commissioners also discussed concerns about the future impact of a proposed constitutional amendment that could significantly reduce property tax revenue available to local governments.
"If Amendment 3 passes, we are gonna be fiscally constrained," Flores called it "doomsday". "We are gonna have to figure out where we start cutting. That's gonna be jobs, that's gonna be services, that's less money to our capital projects."
Commissioner Gregg Weiss said commissioners need to prepare now in case major funding changes occur in the future.
"If we don't create this and the voters pass Amendment 3, we will not be prepared to be able to do what needs to be done to ensure that we keep our community safe," Weiss said.
He stressed that the proposal is not an immediate tax increase.
"This does not create the tax. It creates a mechanism, if that's needed, to be implemented."
According to county staff, services such as the jail, courts and other countywide law enforcement functions would remain funded through the general fund and continue to be shared by all county residents.
"For residents who may be concerned they might be paying more or not getting services like other parts of the county, what would be your message to them?" asked Lopez to Weiss, who voted in favor.
"This will show everybody what it's costing to provide services, and so everyone will be paying their fair share," he said.
But not everyone is in favor of the methods.
"To say that we need to tax our people more to get transparency from a department to me really belies the issue," said Commissioner Maria Sachs, who voted against it.
Sachs told WPTV she hasn't heard from any residents complaining about what's been a standard rate for PBSO service countywide.
"Everyone should be paying the same because it's a constitutional issue," said Sachs, urging PBSO to give the county their budget.
Commissioners ultimately approved the ordinance by a 5-2 vote after making several amendments focused on budget transparency and cost allocation language.
Supporters maintained the measure creates a framework that could help the county prepare for future financial uncertainty while providing more visibility into one of its largest budget expenses.
Opponents argued residents still have unanswered questions about how any future MSTU would work and how costs would be distributed among taxpayers.
For now, county officials say the ordinance creates only the mechanism. Any future decision to levy taxes through the MSTU would require additional action by commissioners.
If approved, the first millage rate assigned to it would need unanimous approval by commissoiners.
WPTV reached out to PBSO after the first request for their budget breakdown and got a statement that reads in part:
"Every year during the audit process, all PBSO annual expenditures are also provided at a sub-object level detail to the County. This information is readily available to them at any time," PBSO's statement said.
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