A proposed two-year budget by King County Executive Dow Constantine would cut the Sheriff’s Office air support and marine units, reduce the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office staff and close bookings by police agenices at the county jail in Kent.
Constantine released his proposed $11.3 billion budget on Monday to the County Council in Seattle. His proposal includes a $1.6 billion general fund budget. Constantine used a mix of revenue changes and spending reductions to cover a projected $22 million shortfall.
The cuts would include the three helicopters and three primary patrol boats from the Sheriff’s Office by 2018 to save about $2 million. Local jurisdictions would have to take over any search and rescue missions on lakes or rivers now done by the Sheriff’s Office.
The closure of the intake center at the county jail at the Maleng Regional Justice Center would save another $1 million. If the county closes its intake center in 2018, Kent Police and other agencies would need to transport anyone arrested for felonies to the county jail in downtown Seattle. That extra transport time would take officers away from patrols in their cities.
The cuts in staff at the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office would save another $2 million. The specific positions to be cut have not yet been identified. Further cuts in the department to attorneys and staff could lead to trial delays and backlogs, according to county budget documents.
Another cut by Constantine would close the work release facility and electronic home detention programs by 2018.
“We will do everything we can to mitigate the impact of these cuts, but let there be no mistake—unless the Legislature fixes the problem, these reductions will only get worse over time,” said Constantine in a media release. “And local governments across the state face the identical situation.”
Constantine wants the Legislature to change the law that limits jurisdictions from raising property taxes more than 1 percent each year. About 59 percent of the county’s net general fund revenues come from property taxes. The balance is comprised of sales tax and other sources, according to county documents.
In 2007, legislators reinstated Tim Eyman’s Initiative 747, which had been tossed out by the state Supreme Court. The law arbitrarily limited revenue growth in most property taxes to 1 percent annually.
Constantine said the county would need to cut another $20 million in 2019 if the Legislature doesn’t allow it to raise property taxes higher than 1 percent per year.
The executive proposed spending about $30 million to improve Metro bus service, including 300,000 hours of additional service over the next two years. The funds for Metro also would fund cameras of buses, security officers, human resources and other functions needed to hire and train new drivers.
The council plans a number of public hearings on the proposed budget and will adopt a final budget in November. A hearing in Kent is at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 18 at the RJC.
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