By Savannah Eller | The Gazette
El Paso County Sheriff Joe Roybal packed a meeting with deputies on Tuesday to ask the Board of County Commissioners for funds to bridge the gap for what he called “a massive, unacceptable pay disparity” between his and other regional law enforcement agencies.
Roybal asked commissioners for a $600,000 increase in funds for 2025 in the county’s preliminary balanced budget, to be matched with funds from the Sheriff’s Office public-safety sales-tax revenue pool.
An El Paso County deputy is paid less overall than other Front Range sheriff’s deputies, according to statistics Roybal showed from the National Fraternal Order of Police. Roybal claimed El Paso County, with a starting salary of $72,696 and a maximum salary of $92,664, was “dead last” among comparable agencies.