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FORT LAUDERDALE — After more than two decades under the Broward Sheriff’s Office, Broward County’s fire-rescue department is headed back toward direct county control.
The Broward County Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to begin the process of ending its agreement with the Sheriff’s Office and allowing the current fire-rescue contract to expire in September 2028. The decision will set in motion a transition involving hundreds of firefighters, paramedics and other emergency personnel.
The county’s move ends an arrangement that has been in place since 2003, when Broward County Fire Rescue became part of the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
Under the transition plan, approximately 900 employees, about 907 according to county officials, would become Broward County employees. The county would assume responsibility for the department’s operations, employment agreements and benefits rather than having the department report through the sheriff.
Commissioners have framed the decision primarily as one of local control and financial oversight.
Commissioner Lamar Fisher, who has pushed for the county to examine taking back the department, said the county should have greater authority over how fire-rescue services are managed and funded.
County Administrator Monica Cepero similarly argued that bringing the department under county government would give commissioners greater oversight of its finances.
The change would extend beyond unincorporated Broward.
Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue currently provides services under agreements with several municipalities, including Cooper City, Weston and Dania Beach. The transition would require the county to assume those responsibilities as well. Fire-rescue operations serving Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, Port Everglades and the county’s air-rescue operations would also be affected.
Broward's arrangement is unusual in Florida. County officials have noted that Broward is among only a small number of counties in the state where a sheriff's office operates the county's fire-rescue system.
The debate over whether that structure still makes sense has been building for months.
Fisher previously called for an examination of the financial and operational consequences of bringing the department back under county control. The discussion has unfolded alongside broader disagreements between the County Commission and Sheriff Gregory Tony over BSO's budget and financial oversight.
The county's decision does not mean fire-rescue services will immediately change for residents.
Instead, the next two years will be devoted to negotiating the mechanics of the transition, including personnel, labor agreements, budgets, contracts and the continued provision of services to municipalities that currently rely on BSO.
County officials have indicated that they believe the transition can be completed without requiring the entire two-year period.
Sheriff Gregory Tony sharply criticized the commission's decision.
In a statement following the vote, Tony argued that Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue has provided emergency services to residents for more than 20 years and pointed to programs developed under BSO, including whole-blood transfusions, SWAT medic capabilities and life-safety education.
Tony characterized the county's decision as a betrayal of the department's firefighters and emergency personnel and argued that the focus should remain on emergency response rather than which government entity controls the department.
The competing arguments highlight the central question facing Broward over the next two years: whether changing who administers fire rescue will produce meaningful improvements in accountability and finances without disrupting a system responsible for responding to thousands of emergencies.
The county is expected to formally notify BSO that it will not renew the existing agreement and begin developing a transition plan.
The current contract is scheduled to remain in effect through September 30, 2028. Until then, BSO will continue operating the fire-rescue system under the existing arrangement.
When the transition is complete, Broward County, rather than the sheriff, will oversee the department.
That means the commission will ultimately be responsible for decisions involving the department's budget, contracts, labor relationships and long-term direction.
The firefighters and paramedics responding to calls, however, will remain the people residents see on the other end of an emergency.
The question now is who will be signing their paychecks, negotiating their contracts and setting the priorities for the department.
After 23 years under the sheriff's office, Broward County has decided that responsibility should once again belong directly to the county.
