Fewer El Paso County sheriff’s deputies will be on patrol beginning in January because of layoffs caused by deep cuts in the department’s funding in next year’s budget, the Sheriff’s Office announced Thursday.The office said in a statement that 24 positions would be eliminated, although not that many people will be laid off. That’s because two opted to retire and three transferred to other jobs. The cost of four others who work in schools will be paid by school districts.”I believe at this juncture, these cuts will only affect those who are working or engaged in the criminal justice system and those who are victims of crimes and their families,” Sheriff Terry Maketa said in a statement.He called the cuts an “unfortunate reality” for his employees who will assume a heavier workload despite earning at least 20 percent less than other sheriff’s personnel on the Front Range.”With all these challenges, we will continue to provide the highest quality of service and will remain committed to preserving the great quality of life this community currently enjoys,” Maketa’s statement said.Due to falling sales tax revenues, county commissioners cut Maketa’s 2009 budget by more than $1 million from this year’s amount.Maketa will eliminate six patrol jobs, six jail deputy positions, five school resource positions, two drug and alcohol education (DARE) deputy slots, four detective positions that serve on federal task forces and one managerial position. The cuts are effective in early January.After the Nov. 4 election, when voters rejected a county tax hike, Maketa said he was facing having to lay off about 32 people, but that had been reduced to 24 in Thursday’s announcement.The layoffs will cut the number of deputies on patrol to six instead of seven or eight, department spokeswoman Lt. Lari Sevene said.Maketa also had feared he’d have to close two jail wards, but that was averted by an agreement with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.Four of the five school resource officer positions slated for the ax will be retained because schools decided to fund them. Those include two deputies at Harrison School District 3 and one each at Academy District 20 and Falcon School District 49. Lewis-Palmer School District 38 chose not to fund the position.Two employees will retire, three employees will transfer from sworn to civilian posts, 11 employees voluntarily resigned and four employees opted to take a leave of absence. Employees who resigned or will take a leave will be eligible for rehire.The sheriff paid $72,326 in severance to 11 employees who qualified based on years of service.

Holy family bulto; Romero Santero; New Mexico; 1993; wood Photo by