County Council approves Amendment 10 transition plan with Sheriff

Posted On: June 17, 2020

In 2018, voters passed Amendment 10 in a statewide referendum that gave considerably more operational autonomy to elected department heads like Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood.

On Tuesday, the County Council approved a written agreement with Sheriff Chitwood outlining how the changes will work when Amendment 10 takes effect this January. While the county is awaiting a ruling on a court appeal to determine whether the statewide amendment applies here, county officials nonetheless have placed a high priority on making sure that Volusia County is ready for the new government procedures to take effect. The agreement with Sheriff Chitwood is a key part of the county’s transition plan.

The council already approved similar agreements earlier this year with the county’s two other elected department heads, Supervisor of Elections Lisa Lewis and Property Appraiser Larry Bartlett. The 10-page memorandum of agreement with Sheriff Chitwood took a little longer to complete because it covered more ground – everything from operation of the county’s E911 system and public safety dispatch center to the transfer of ownership of all of the gear that the county has bought over the years to equip the Sheriff’s Office, such as guns, cars, boats, helicopters, trailers, computers, desks, chairs and office equipment.

“There were a lot of moving parts to get this done,” noted Sheriff Chitwood.

“I’m glad that we were able to work that out,” added County Chair Ed Kelley. “I know there was a little give and take, but I think all in all it’s going to be a good agreement for the residents and the taxpayers.”

Under the agreement, the Sheriff’s Office will continue to operate the county’s E911 service and public safety communications center. Unless the courts rule otherwise, the amendment will take effect on Jan. 5, 2021. At that point, Sheriff’s Office personnel will no longer be county employees. Instead, they’ll become employees of the sheriff and be subject to personnel rules established by the Sheriff’s Office. The county is planning to transfer one assistant county attorney position and one paralegal position from the county attorney’s office to the Sheriff’s Office.

Like Lewis and Bartlett, Sheriff Chitwood has decided to continue using some county services such as facilities management and maintenance, custodial, fleet maintenance and risk management.