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Florida Gov. Scott proposes pay raises for law enforcement

From on the street to inside the prisons, keeping a community safe is a dangerous job.

Knowing that, Florida Gov. Rick Scott rolled out plans to boost salaries for law enforcement as part of his new budget proposal. “We’re going to give a 5 percent pay raise to all state sworn law enforcement officers,” he said.

$12 million will go toward raising pay for some 4,000 officers, such as state troopers. Scott also wants $38 million to raise salaries for Florida corrections officers, who haven’t seen a raise in six years.

“With our corrections department, we want to make sure our inmates are safe, or anybody working in prisons is safe,” Scott continued.

Retired Navy veteran Bernard Clark wants higher salaries across the board. His son is an officer with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. “I think it’s a great idea. These guys do a lot of hard work and I think they deserve it,” he said.

So does Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams.

“We need to take care of these men and women who are out here serving the community. I would agree. I think he’s doing the right thing in taking steps in that direction,” Williams said.

Scott said his goal is to retain the best people and make sure people feel valued. That's something some taxpayers don’t mind helping with. “Increase the tax or whatever you need to do, but these guys – they need to get paid,” he said.

In addition to pay raises, Scott said he plans to add 46 counterterrorism officers to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. His pay raise proposal is part of his overall $83.5 billion budget. Lawmakers will get to discuss it when the legislative session starts in March.