By C1 Staff
TAMPA BAY, Fla. — Further inquiry into the lack of funding for probation officers in Florida has revealed a legislative raid on a corrections trust fund intended to pay for the officers’ training and equipment.
10 News reports that the fund was originally ordered closed in 2004, but the State of Florida continued to collect millions from probationers in the last decade. The money was poured into its general revenue fund.
Probation officers in the state have been sharing state vehicles to make house calls, often forcing them to use their personal vehicles without reimbursement, and caseloads are at dangerous levels due to understaffing.
Low salaries have also hamstringed the department for employee retention.
Offenders under the supervision of the state probation and parole agency must pay $2 a month to the state to help pay for their supervision.
“These funds shall be used by the department to pay for correctional probation officers’ training and equipment, including radios, firearms training, firearms, and attendant equipment necessary,” states FSS 948.09.
The DOC reports the collections have averaged $548,000 in the last five fiscal years. While the agency reports spending an average of $584,000 on training and arsenal/security supplies during that time, the expenditures fall short of revenues some years.