A plan to pay state troopers and fish and wildlife officers bonuses based on “citizen contacts” has been squashed by Gov. Rick Scott.
Scott came out hard against the state’s Department of Management Services proposal after an outcry was raised late last week.
Opponents like state Rep. Matt Gaetz had panned the idea as an invitation for law enforcement officers to establish ticket quotas.
“I’ve been one of the louder legislators arguing against speeding tickets as a measurement of trooper performance,” Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, said.
In a statement issued Friday, Scott said “the idea that FHP would tie officer bonuses to the number of tickets they write is absolutely outrageous and wrong.”
The proposal to award bonuses for citizen contacts per hour was hatched as one way of determining employee achievement, according to DMS spokesman Ben Wolf.
Scott had recommended the state set aside $167 million for performance bonuses for state employees, Wolf said.
Under the plan, employees who received “commendable” ratings would receive a $2,500 bonus and those determined to be “outstanding” would receive $5,000.
Scott said the idea of performance-based bonuses was to reward state employees who make life easier for Florida residents, not harder.
“All state worker bonuses should be based on better – not worse – outcomes for the people of Florida,” Scott said. “Floridians paying more in tickets is not a better outcome. Period.”
Before the governor stepped in, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles had issued a statement of its own critical of those decrying the bonus plan.
“Bonuses would never be provided based on enforcement actions such as a citation, warning or equipment inspection,” the release said.
Citizen contacts would have included things like “assisting motorists with disabled vehicles ... and helping stranded motorists who may have run out of gas,” the Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles release said.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Tom McLaughlin at 850-315-4435 or tmclaughlin@nwfdailynews.com. Follow him on Twitter @TomMnwfdn.