While a change in the law has yet to be approved, the Volusia Sheriff's Office is already patrolling county beaches in preparation for Gov. Ron DeSantis to sign House Bill 1595.
The bill says a county government may not maintain a police department to provide service in unincorporated areas (like the beaches). That authority rests with the sheriff.
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The county's beaches are currently managed by Beach Safety. Its beach patrol officers are triple certified as law enforcement officers, emergency medical technicians, and lifeguards. The proposed law puts the law enforcement side of beach management in the hands of the sheriff's office.
"We have been preparing and patrolling for some time now," according to sheriff's office spokesman Andrew Gant. "The sheriff’s office already has countywide jurisdiction; the law simply requires us to take over primary jurisdiction on the beach."
But the forced transition sparked a nasty feud between Beach Safety and Sheriff Mike Chitwood. While county leaders and the sheriff's office say they are working together, a union representative has raised some concerns.
Bryon White, spokesman for the union that represents Beach Safety workers, says the sheriff has pushed for the bills and that this is really just a "power grab." Chitwood says turning over law enforcement to the sheriff's office is a "common sense change" and even challenged the legal authority of Beach Safety to make arrests.
More lifeguards needed
White said Beach Safety is already at a "historic low" for staffing and the county needs to hire more lifeguards right away ― which he said will probably mean paying them more and making other changes.
Beach Safety officers rescue people, too, but now some of them are leaving ―some to the sheriff's office, some to other agencies, White said.
He said the transition and how it's being handled is hurting morale among the Beach Safety ranks.
"I think people are feeling like there's not enough people to keep the public safe, and there's nothing being done about that," White said.
The sheriff's office plans to have an increased number of deputies on the beach for Mother's Day, because the office anticipates there will be a bigger crowd.
"In fact, with Volusia sheriff’s deputies now providing law enforcement service on the beach, there will be more life-saving Beach Safety personnel on duty, with their eyes on the water," according to a sheriff's office Facebook post.
Adding deputies as needed
The sheriff's office has 12 deputies on the day shift patrolling the beaches. The night-shift staffing is the same as it has been according to Gant, with two deputies assigned to the beach and two sergeants in the area.
On both shifts the sheriff's office will add more deputies if the need arises, such as for special events. The sheriff's office expects to have the same staffing plan after the law changes and the transition is complete.
But that's still fewer boots on the sand.
Beach Safety Director Andy Ethridge told the County Council in April that during the summer season, there are typically 20-24 Beach Patrol officers on a shift during the day, and three at night.
Will they stay or go?
Chitwood said he'll offer Beach Safety officers jobs with the sheriff's office. They might be assigned as a deputy elsewhere in the county.
So far, the sheriff's office expects to have up to 20 Beach Safety officers make the transition to deputies, according to Gant.
Beach Safety now has 53 officers and hasn't received any formal resignations from them, county spokesman Clayton Jackson said. Beach Safety had 58 officers in April.
White said 12 officers are going to the sheriff's office, four have gone to other agencies and more officers are considering leaving. There's also the issue of training.
White said from what he and union officials understand, officers transitioning to the sheriff's office will take seven weeks of training. If done immediately that would keep them off the beach during some of the busiest times.
But Chitwood said in April that officers who are new to the agency go through 10 weeks of training, and he said that can be postponed until after the summer.
'Risk to public safety'
White said that the sheriff's "rhetoric and statements" and "the lack of planning" is hindering his recruitment efforts. "I think he would have gotten more people but for the comments that he made and toxicity."
Ethridge said in April the transition would be a risk to public safety and be more costly.
He said Volusia has the busiest beach in Florida and for most of the East Coast of the U.S. He also said that Beach Safety officers are specially trained and train other agencies for water rescues and other aspects of their job.
With each loss of a Beach Safety officer, there is a loss of a person also trained as a lifeguard and emergency medical technician, he said.
"Currently the only thing harder to find right now than a police officer is a lifeguard," he told the county council.
Ethridge wasn't available for comment Friday.
The county has a mix of full-time professional lifeguards and part-time lifeguards. The county has 200 of 300 positions filled for part-time lifeguards, and the county is actively recruiting to try and decrease the vacancies.
The county has 64 of 69 full-time professional lifeguard positions filled. Of those, 53 are the remaining Beach Safety patrol officers who are triple certified. Eleven of them are employees who are dually certified as lifeguards and EMTs, according to Jackson.
The Beach Safety officers who stay with the county will remain as lifeguard-EMTs but won't have law enforcement authority.
