County asks departments to make cuts to relieve budget

By Keri Brenner | The Olympian • Published June 11, 2008

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OLYMPIA – With Thurston County facing a $4 million budget shortfall in 2009, the county commission is asking department heads to make voluntary budget cuts that could total up to 10 percent.

The cuts include slashing program costs and absorbing staff members' annual cost-of-living increases, which previously weren't covered by individual departments' budgets. They were outlined in a memo sent Tuesday to all county department heads from Commissioners Diane Oberquell, Bob Macleod and Cathy Wolfe.

Cynthia Stewart, assistant county administrative officer, said the memo did not cite specific across-the-board reductions. The goal, she said, was to bring the general-fund budget down by 5 percent.

"We want to see what people can come up with voluntarily," Stewart said. "We'll see how far that gets us and then decide later if we need to make mandatory changes."

Thurston County Sheriff Dan Kimball said the cuts could force his department to eliminate the positions of 22 patrol deputies, corrections officers and administrative staff members and stop responding to less-serious crimes, such as identity theft and auto theft.

"I think people should be concerned," he said at a news conference Tuesday at the Thurston County Courthouse.

He also said about $300,000 in county jail inmate treatment programs could be eliminated, and that he and 10 of his top staff officers and aides were declining raises.

"We want to send a message to our people that we're trying to save their jobs," Kimball said.

Sgt. Dave Odegaard, president of the Thurston County Deputy Sheriffs Association, said he was frustrated by news of the possible cuts.

"The commissioners should have known some time ago that the revenues available were declining and taken less-severe actions earlier," he said.

Odegaard added that the mandate for cuts means the "safety of our citizens and of the men and women who serve and protect are now in even more peril."

"While we realize that economic times are tough right now, it is readily apparent that the board of county commissioners and their administrative staff have demonstrated their incompetence and fiscal irresponsibility," he said.