County Executive Maryellen Odell "s Statement on Law Enforcement and the County's 2021 Budget

The following is a press release issued earlier today by the Office of

Putnam County Executive, Maryellen Odell.


Recently, there have been false and erroneous statements circulating regarding law enforcement and the 2021 county budget, and I appreciate the opportunity to correct the record. In public meetings, some people have characterized this budget as “defunding the police.” Nothing could be further from the truth.  Even as families across Putnam experience financial difficulties as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we will not jeopardize public safety.

Indeed, the Putnam County 2021 budget contains $30.8 million for the Sheriff’s Department, an increase of $763,000 from the adopted 2020 budget. A full 19% of the entire 2021 adopted budget is allocated to the Sheriff’s Department. Budget mismanagement should not be confused with our funding of the law enforcement agency.

While the County Legislature and I dedicate a major portion of the budget to law enforcement, we have a duty to see that taxpayer funds are spent wisely.  Our focus on overtime spending has never been more necessary, especially due to the devastating economic effects resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Here are the facts about Sheriff’s Department overtime:

  • In 2019, a total of $2.8 million was spent on overtime incurred by deputy sheriffs and corrections officers; 
  • Due to overtime, 48 of the top 100 highest paid County Employees in 2019 were deputy sheriffs;
  • The top 48 deputies earned an average of $128,430 each;
  • Three deputy sheriffs earned more than Sheriff Robert Langley;
  • Five Deputy Sheriffs earned between $50,000 and $77,000 in overtime alone in 2019.

And, these numbers are calculated before the Sheriff’s Department’s new 2020 contract settlement, which included significant raises.

In addition, we are reducing funding for the Marine Unit, which Sheriff Langley has chosen to run entirely through overtime.  The unit will no longer patrol in places where its service is duplicated by other agencies. Why should Putnam County taxpayers pay to patrol the Hudson River, which is not in the county’s jurisdiction and which the State of New York and the Coast Guard patrol as well. Likewise, we are ending the Sheriff deputies’ patrol of Lake Mahopac, which the Town of Carmel Police also patrol.  The Marine Unit will continue to patrol Lake Oscawana, as it is the only agency to do so.

I am not disparaging the efforts of the hardworking men and women of the Sheriff’s Department, but overtime costs need to managed in every department or they continue to grow.

There’s no question this is a tough budget year. We have kept the spending increase in the 2021 county budget to less than 1% even as we avoided layoffs and met our fiscal and social responsibilities to all of our constituents.

False narratives about “defunding the police” are not only untrue, but detract from the hard work that employees in every Putnam County department have done and will continue to do during these unprecedented times.    

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Submitted by Brewster, NY

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