Budget woes threaten social services

Money problems force county to weigh contributions

By Keri Brenner | The Olympian • Published September 08, 2008

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OLYMPIA – As many as 17 social-service agencies could face layoffs or other cuts if budget-strapped Thurston County stops contributing to the Human Services Review Council, agency leaders said.

"It would be catastrophic," said Charles Shelan, executive director of Olympia-based Community Youth Services, speculating that the county's pullout could lead to state or federal matching funds drying up as well. "It's affecting the most vulnerable people in the community."

The review council, a coalition of area governments that awards grants of between $12,000 and $50,000 to individual nonprofit human-service agencies, distributed $416,000 this year to the 17 organizations. Of that amount, the county contributed $112,000, about 27 percent of the review council's budget.

The county is under pressure to reduce its 2009 general-fund spending plan by $4 million from this year's $79 million.

Olympia was the largest contributor to the review council this year, donating $195,000, or about 47 percent. Lacey gave $84,000, or 20 percent; Tumwater contributed $25,000, or 6 percent.

Thurston County commissioners will discuss during a meeting Tuesday whether to continue funding the review council for 2009, chief administrative officer Don Krupp said. He said the choice is whether to focus on the county's essential services — such as coroner's or sheriff's offices — or continue giving to outside agencies.

"It's up to the board to set the priorities," Krupp said. "We'll give them a complete compilation of the effects of the budget reduction, and they will go through that systematically."

Commissioner Bob Macleod wrote in a letter last week to Shelan that he was wrestling with concerns that short-term cuts to early-childhood and family programs "may come back to haunt us in the proliferation of destructive (and seductive) youth gangs tomorrow."

Macleod wrote that he hopes to convene a meeting of Thurston County elected officials to discuss coping tools for potential human-service cuts and to help avert any difficulties in leveraging local money for state and federal grants.