Shame: Deputies deserve bigger pay raise

Hidalgo County is shamefully short of sheriff’s deputies, based on the national average — 2.4 sworn officers per 1,000 residents.

Here, we only have .6 deputies per 1,000 residents.

This, despite the fact that Hidalgo County typically ranks as the ninth most populous counties among the state’s 254.

Also, Hidalgo is the 15th largest county in Texas (1,583 square miles).

Meaning, come on, give us at least one deputy per 1,000 residents. And pay them more while you’re at it because they are grossly underpaid as it is compared to their peers who work with other law enforcement agencies.

Instead of having approximately 500 sworn deputies, which would meet the national average, Hidalgo County is getting by with only 300 deputies, approximately.

Instead of carving out more pay to keep our sworn deputies on the job, while recruiting more to get the department up to speed, the Hidalgo County Commissioners Court just gave them a paltry 5-percent cost-of-living increase, just like county employees in any other department.

Bad Optics

For this county’s elected officials, the “optics,” if you will, the public perception, isn’t sitting well. The comments on social media, some, are brutal.

Most center around this question: How can the Commissioners Court vote to approve a salary increase of between 15 and 17 percent for the judge and four commissioners, and approve a pay bump of 12 percent for this county’s other top elected officials, while giving deputies a meager 5 percent?

The deputies work alone. At night, 3 a.m. Not easy work — answering domestic disturbance calls inside a neighborhood known for gang violence. That adrenaline boost alone deserves better pay. Average pay for sheriff’s deputies is approximately $55,000, while cities like Edinburg average $70,000 for its police officers.

If this new proposed budget is approved, the top county salaries would range, approximately, between $170,000 and $200,000. Not counting outside income.

Woefully Short

The state standard for a Texas county is 2.5 deputies (law enforcement officers) per 1,000 residents. As far as I know, McAllen is the only city (local jurisdiction) that meets that number. Other cities in Hidalgo County may come close.

At the county level, however, as already mentioned, the ratio isn’t even close to what anyone would consider normal — .6 per 1,000 residents.

This, despite the fact that the number of calls made to the sheriff’s department across Hidalgo County has increased in recent years from approximately 2,600 per week to between 2,800 to 2,900.

Which makes the 5 percent handed to the sheriff’s deputies seem like small change indeed.

The most valuable thing a law enforcement agency can hope to have are officers/deputies with real street experience. A valued “street cop” are the ones who mentor the new cops, deputies, who come along and deescalate the most dangerous situations.

If a jurisdiction like Hidalgo County pays its understaffed deputies too little, while giving top elected county officials a double-digit salary increase, then it not only tells seasoned sheriff’s deputies how little they are thought of, but it’s terrible for morale, and typically, the first opportunity a good deputy has to jump to a better paying job in law enforcement, they are gone.

And county residents are worse off because of it.

The Commissioners Court is saying it paid to have a survey conducted among the state’s 10 most populous counties in the state and discovered that its top elected officials are paid approximately $46,500 less than their peers.

The question with regard to that survey, however, is this question: did the survey give any weight to poverty?