Published on Thursday, November 17, 2005
in the Orlando Sentinel

Safe investment

The state just projected a $3.2 billion windfall in sales-tax receipts. Peeling off just a small portion of that money to boost the Florida Highway Patrol's manpower would be an excellent investment to save lives.

The FHP's forces are stretched to the breaking point. There aren't enough troopers to make the roads safe. The grim consequence of that manpower shortage is that this year Florida will likely break another record for traffic deaths.

As of Tuesday, preliminary records show that the death toll is 10 percent higher this year than it was for the same period in 2004. In Central Florida, there have been 659 traffic fatalities. That's 25 more than the same time last year.

This is where the state sales-tax windfall comes in. Hurricane rebuilding and the red-hot housing market are bringing in $3.2 billion beyond revenue projections. The FHP has prepared a reasonable plan to hire 50 more troopers. That would cost $5 million, just a sliver of that sales-tax windfall.

The need is obvious. There are only 1,669 troopers to protect 1,900 miles of highways and 9,000 miles of state roads around the clock. They're being overwhelmed by the volume of traffic crashes.

This crisis is especially acute in Central and South Florida. Troopers typically spend almost all of their time going from the scene of one crash to another to complete report forms. It's not unusual for people who have been in a crash to wait two hours or more until a trooper gets to them.

When troopers are working on reports, they aren't patrolling. In Orange County, where the number of troopers dropped from 68 in 1996 to 53 today, there have been 179 fatalities this year. Last year at this time there were 156 fatalities.

In the past, the state budget didn't include enough money to make a significant increase in the FHP's manpower. With the tax windfall, it's clear the money is available. The Legislature and Gov. Jeb Bush have a responsibility to make sure that during the scramble to spend this money, FHP isn't left stranded by the side of the road.