In 2020, the Escambia County voters approved the creation of the Escambia Children’s Trust that would be funded by increasing property taxes $8-$10 million annually. The Trust’s board next Tuesday will vote on its first group of large grants for out-of-school programs and two sole-source initiatives.
According to its website: “The purpose of the Escambia Children’s Trust is to invest in the well-being of children within Escambia County by maximizing resources and ensuring accountability through investment in and support to community provider programs through a competitive review process.”
Under the sole-source initiatives:
The program committee has recommended the Trust fund the Sheriff’s Office Movie Nights $40,000, the agency’s Public Service Announcements $50,000, Virtual Reality Training Simulator for officers $152,201.14 and a Real Time Crime Center $190,000.
The proposal lists no metrics on how the Trust can determine the $432,501 will improve the well-being of children. There are no numbers on how many children will be served, or even why a Sheriff’s Office Movie Night is better than other similar events in the community.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office isn’t offering matching funds from its $77.47 million budget, Law Enforcement Trust Fund or Escambia County Sheriff Foundation.
Is this what voters expect the Trust to fund?