Accreditation requirements helped the Hillsborough County (FL) Sheriff’s Office during a citizen’s task force analysis of adequate program level funding for the Board of County Commissioners.

Throughout 1998, the Hillsborough County government was involved in an in-depth evaluation of its finances and program funding levels. The Board of County Commissioners established a "Blue Ribbon Committee on County Finances" to look into the many aspects of county revenues and expenditures. Since it has the second largest portion of the county budget for general and MSTU tax funds, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office was closely scrutinized during this process.

The Sheriff's Office Planning and Research Bureau responded to numerous committee requests for information. A basis for many of the replies was the annual workload assessment, an accreditation requirement. The process and product allowed staff to provide accurate information concerning staffing resources and workload levels. Additionally, another accreditation requirement, of linked goals and measurable objectives, allowed the Sheriff's Office to provide the Committee with outcome results based upon clear and measurable objectives that tied into specific overall goals, values, and the Sheriff's Office mission statement. A result of the Committee’s work was a change in the county’s budgeting process, requiring performance-based budget submissions - a process the Sheriff's Office had continued to do based on accreditation and previous budget requirements since 1986.

Accreditation has enabled the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office to allocate manpower and financial resources in functional level service delivery where effectiveness and efficiency can be measured. The accreditation process of continuous evaluation for workload, staffing, and objectives tied to goals, ensures that the law enforcement needs of the citizens of the county are met.

After the Blue Ribbon Committee review of the Sheriff's Office information, Dr. Jerry Koehler, Chairman of the Blue Ribbon Committee, stated "...Hillsborough County government lacked measurement of activities. At no time did I observe a presentation that indicated the amount of time it took to perform a specific activity, errors made in the process, cost of the process and the outcomes, with one exception: the Hillsborough County Sheriff."