Broward officials decide not to give BSO full project authority after training facility audit reveals increased costs – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports
NEAR FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (WSVN) — Broward County Commissioners have approved the results of an audit they say will change the way they conduct projects going forward, but it does not involve giving full decision-making authority to the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
The board said it would “never” give BSO sole responsibility for major projects after the final cost of the recently opened training facility was more than double the originally planned cost.
“The total cost of the training center is $73.7 million, more than the original estimated project cost of $34 million,” said Broward County Auditor Robert Melton.
Melton, who decided to look into it after the project’s total cost was announced, told county commissioners that while he understands that Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony has a job to do, the county could have saved some money if it had had better control over the project.
Other Broward officials, such as Mayor Nan Rich, agreed.
“In my opinion, we must never delegate authority again,” Rich said.
“We obviously won’t be doing that again, I hope,” said Broward County Commissioner Lamar Fisher.
Melton told commissioners that Tony’s expenses were so high that he spent money intended for salaries on the construction of the building.
“The sheriff reallocated about $8.6 million from other funds for the training center. Of that, $4.8 million came from salaries. Because the building is a county building – it belongs to the county, not the sheriff – the county must maintain control,” he said.
BSO responded to the audit on Thursday afternoon with a statement:
“This review was initiated prior to the completion of this construction project, after BSO requested additional funding specifically to address changes requested by the county government that resulted in millions of dollars in additional costs.”
BSOMelton told commissioners he recommends that the county maintain control over future projects to prevent this from happening again. That way, if budget issues arise during the projects, the county can make the decision.
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