As tensions between Broward County and its sheriff’s office escalate, commissioners voted to shelve the department’s budget supplement at a meeting Tuesday.
The commission also discussed a new audit blasting the Broward County Sheriff’s Office for not following up on financial concerns raised at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. And, amid raised voices and scattered applause, commissioners said they’d continue looking into stripping the department of its 911 response service.
The day prior, Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony announced on social media he is suspending budget talks with the county, citing an ongoing Office of the Statewide Prosecutor’s investigation into the commission.
All nine commissioners were subpoenaed last month alongside other county officials. The order came after they approved studies that asked whether Broward could create its own departments to serve Port Everglades and the airport, rather than relying on the sheriff.
The county already approved stripping fire rescue services from BSO last month.
In an audibly enraged tone, Broward County Mayor Mark Bogen called out Tony on Tuesday for communicating through social media videos rather than attending meetings to have dialogues about the department’s budget.
He also pointed out budget negotiations ended weeks ago and said he wasn’t sure what exactly the sheriff was suspending.
“It'd be really great to explore and talk, but sheriff's not talking to us. Sheriff's not negotiating,” Bogen said. “Sheriff, if you're watching, all you gotta do is come and talk. We've had some great lunches, sheriff, but you just don't want to talk and just talk and negotiate with us?”
Supplement request deferred
BSO requested a budget supplement of $5.8 million for county commissioners to consider Tuesday. The funding was earmarked for dispatch service salaries, according to the request, filed Sept. 3 by Chief Financial Officer Oscar Llerena.
Commissioners voted unanimously to approve a motion from Mayor Bogen to indefinitely defer the supplement.
Bogen, after calling on the sheriff to “stop bullying us,” initially suggested giving BSO the money only if Tony signed an agreement that he would use it as represented on paper. But he later said the sheriff shouldn’t be paid at all if he wouldn’t negotiate.
“When someone said publicly, ‘I am suspending negotiations, I'm not going to be accountable, I'm not going to be transparent, I'm not going to talk to you,’” Bogen said. “Why are we even talking about giving them more money? Are we crazy?”
County staff said BSO didn’t provide enough background for commissioners to know what would happen if the request was denied.
“Other than the sheriff having asked us for the money, we don't have the background to say where the funds are being used,” said County Attorney Annika Ashton.
Asked whether the sheriff had legal recourse if denied funding, Ashton added Tony was “not entitled to the money for this service.”
Future of airport, 911 dispatch unclear
Commissioners also discussed a new follow-up to a 2024 audit on the law enforcement services BSO provides at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
The original audit revealed that the airport was paying more to contract law enforcement services than peer airports and recommended the county create its own police force. The Broward County Aviation Department, which runs the airport, has had a contract with BSO since 1996.
READ MORE: An audit recommends Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport create its own police force
Tuesday’s updated report, conducted from October 2025 to July 2026, found that of the 34 recommendations the county auditor made following an initial review in April 2024, 14 still haven’t been implemented.
The lag came because BSO didn’t give the county the detailed data it requested, said County Auditor Bob Melton on Tuesday. Many of the non-implemented items dealt with the sheriff’s failure to provide actual expenses to compare to budgeted expenses, he said.
One unimplemented recommendation asked BSO to determine retirement payments and other post-employment benefits based on the portion of time staff actually spent at the airport, which could have saved about $540,000, the report noted.
BSO also didn’t report response times for service calls using the 95th percentile as recommended. Instead, the department “refused to do that” and instead gave average response times, which could be skewed by outliers, Melton said.
“This is not proper stewardship on the part of the sheriff to not provide actual data,” Melton said.
The commission then unanimously approved a motion to direct county administration to develop and present a plan for transitioning the regional 911 system, including call-taking and dispatch services, from BSO to the county.
BSO has managed 911 services since 2014, but the county owns the equipment and infrastructure. At a budget meeting last month, which the sheriff didn’t attend, county administration warned commissioners against taking over fire rescue, the seaport, the airport and 911 at the same time. Instead, they suggested taking up to a year to craft proposals.
On Tuesday, County Administrator Monica Cepero said she envisioned creating a public safety department housed within the county that includes fire rescue and 911.
By the next regular commission meeting Oct. 20, she said, staff would have a better idea of what that might look like. She and other county leaders emphasized they weren’t looking to fire dispatchers already working for the sheriff’s department.
“To those who are working every day, rest assured there will be no firings,” said Commissioner Lamar Fisher. “There will be just kind of bringing them over, working with unions, etcetera, to do that. So nobody's going to lose their jobs.”
