Council considers more cuts and levy increase

By Stan Matthews
County Communications Program Manager

In a special meeting on July 22, members of the San Juan County Council heard the County Administrator and the County Auditor lay out the dimensions of the problem that lies ahead in completing the cuts required to balance the remainder of the budget for this year and the upcoming 2010 budget.

The problem is falling revenue. “The early review has us projecting revenue back somewhere in the neighborhood of the 2005 level,” Administrator Pete Rose said. He described the difficulty of the presentation he and the Auditor were about to make by referencing the first phase of mid-year cuts. “I had said that process would take you places you did not think you would go. I think we need to go even farther”

Auditor Milene Henley began her presentation with the assumption that all personnel reductions and other budget cuts already in place would be carried forward; along with the elimination of all general fund support for County Parks, approximately $68,000.

Henley told the Council that the elimination of Parks funding would mean that two popular parks, Shaw and Eastsound Village Green, would close.

Parks Director Dona Wuthnow has said that even if the two major parks are closed next year, she will have to make additional service reductions in her department in order to operate entirely on revenues generated by park fees and grants.

Henley outlined additional non-mandated services which could legally be cut and would, in aggregate, bring the 2010 budget into balance:

• All general fund support for Senior Services – Amount: $211,000
• (Agricultural) Extension Service – Amount: $133,000
  This includes County funding for 4-H programs, the Agricultural Coordinator and Volunteer programs (Master Gardeners, etc.)
• Two Management level positions – Amount: $174,000
  (The Community Development and Planning Department Director position has been eliminated. The second position was not named.)
• The County’s Emergency Management operation would be left entirely dependent on grants – Amount:  $50,000
• The County’s annual contribution to the Islands Oil Spill Association’s equipment fund would be eliminated – Amount: $8,000
• Orcas Island youth programs – Amount: $5,000
• Furlough all Courthouse and non-represented employees for seven days of closure- Amount:  $140,000 (Furloughs for union employees will need to be bargained with the union.)

Under Washington law, a taxing entity must win voter approval before increasing its property tax income from existing properties by more than 1 percent annually.

Henley told the Council that raising the property tax levy by 10 cents would increase the tax on a $450,000 house by $45 per year and bring an additional $800,000 into the County’s general fund. She estimated the cost of restoring Parks, Senior Services, the Extension Service, Health, and other popular programs which have suffered cutbacks to 2008 funding levels would total approximately $1 million. Even if that was done, most of the budget cutting structural changes and reductions heading into 2009 and done mid-year would remain in place in 2010.

The Council will hold a public hearing August 11 on an ordinance enacting the second round of cuts to this year’s County budget. Those cuts will add at least $35,000 to the nearly $900,000 in cuts last month and as much as $119,000. At that meeting the Council will also decide whether to ask voters to approve a property tax increase in the November 2009 election.

In discussing the issue, most Council members seemed to agree that the issue should go on the ballot, though none where enthusiastic about it.  Council Member Richard Fralick summed up the Council’s sentiment, “Asking the voters for more is something that I find very difficult to do … the reason I entertain it is that I’ve had a number of constituents come to me and say ‘the kind of thing that is happening to the county is producing a county government that is not the kind of county government that we want . . . give us an opportunity to step up to the plate and offer more.’”

The Council will have a workshop meeting beginning at 1 p.m. on Monday, July 27 to look at further cuts to the 2009 budget and to work at putting together a balanced 2010 “County current” budget. Council Chair Rich Peterson said that the public will be invited to provide input during that workshop.

A detailed copy of the proposed “Phase 2” cuts in the 2009 “County Current” budget is available online at: https://sanjuanco.com/news/news/Phase2BudgetReductionSummary072209.pdf

A PDF file copy of the slides the Auditor prepared for her presentation to the council are available at: https://sanjuanco.com/news/news/Draft2010Budget072209_slides.pdf