Many cuts but no layoffs in Somers’ spending plan

Published 1:30 am Friday, September 23, 2016

EVERETT — In his first budget address as Snohomish County executive, Dave Somers on Friday promised to start the county on a path to reform, despite austere financial realities.

While some elected officials reacted warmly, some law enforcement officials felt slighted.

Somers’ spending plan for next year would avoid layoffs, but eliminates many programs and projects because “we simply don’t have the money.”

The executive cited his recommendation earlier this year to shelve plans for a new courthouse as a sign of his cost consciousness. He highlighted initiatives for economic development, customer service and efficiency.

“I believe my budget recommendation for 2017 is fair, innovative and reform-minded,” Somers told a crowd of employees and others in a county administration building on Friday morning. “Most importantly, my budget is balanced. I think it’s a budget that fulfills our basic responsibilities, provides essential public services and invests in the future of Snohomish County.”

The recommended operating budget would total about $238 million. That compares to $230 million now. Because the county’s expenses are rising faster than revenues, it’s not enough to sustain current services. The county government must contend with a 5 percent rise in salaries, health-care benefits and cost of living, among other factors. To get by without cuts, Somers’ office said the budget would have had to have grown to $244 million.

That left the need to cut some $6 million across all government operations. To help bridge the gap, Somers proposed eliminating four vacant positions. Future hiring restrictions are possible.

The executive said his goals for county government include longterm reform, saving money, investing in “infrastructure and innovation,” and quality economic development.

About 75 cents of every dollar in the county operating budget goes to support cops, courts and corrections.

The Sheriff’s Office stands to take a $2.4 million cut in Somers’ proposal. That left Sheriff Ty Trenary more than a little disappointed.

“The fact that public safety was left out of the executive’s four primary goals for 2017 is extremely disheartening!” Trenary said in a statement.

The sheriff cited studies that concluded his office already was understaffed and underfunded, even before the proposed cut. He said he’s committed to absorbing the loss without layoffs and hopes the County Council will re-consider Somers’ proposal as the budget process plays out.

The sheriff’s office has been the county’s top budget priority, by far, for years. Since 2007, it has received three-quarters of all new revenue in the county operating budget. While most county departments under-spent their allotted budgets by 1.5 percent from 2011 to 2015, the sheriff’s office has struggled to manage costs most years, especially overtime spending at the jail.

Meanwhile, since 2012, 911 calls to the sheriff’s office have declined every year.

Somers’ budget was greeted more enthusiastically in other quarters.

Auditor Carolyn Weikel and Prosecuting Attorney Mark Roe applauded Somers’ speech for being down-to-earth and realistic.

“His message was short, sweet and direct,” Weikel said.

Roe said he appreciated the absence of political posturing.

“It’s refreshing to have somebody stand up there and tell it like it is,” he said. “There’s a lot of stuff that we’d like to do, but we don’t have the money.”

For the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, that means trimming costs through employee attrition and retirements, and hiring entry-level personnel at lower salaries when more-experienced workers leave.

Despite the cuts, the number of people on the county payroll would go up overall. Some departments that rely mostly on fee revenue, rather than taxes, are adding positions to keep pace with demand. The most notable is the solid waste division, which has been handling an increased amount of trash. To keep pace, its workforce is set to expand by nine positions next year, to 134 from 125 now.

The budget provides for more than 2,800 budgeted positions across all departments.

Somers was elected executive last year after several terms as a councilman representing eastern Snohomish County. He said he tried to model his approach to the budget on that of former County Executive Bob Drewel. To Somers, that meant putting a premium on communication.

“We talked to everyone, listened to their priorities, and made decisions based on the needs of the county and the availability of resources,” he said.

The new budget comes after voters in the August primary narrowly rejected a sales-tax measure known as Proposition 1. The measure would have generated an estimated $15 million per year for county public safety and human services programs through a 0.2 percent increase in sales tax, which would add 2 cents on a $10 purchase. It would have allowed the sheriff’s office to add 35 deputies over the next three years.

It’s now up to the County Council to examine Somers’ proposed budget. Council members plan to host two budget hearings next month and pass a final budget in mid to late November.

Somers in May recommended mothballing plans to build a new county courthouse in favor of renovating the 1960s-era court building, a move projected to save more than $80 million. Repairs are intended to address emergency issues such as worn out elevators and the building’s earthquake readiness. Council members hope to reach a decision about whether to commit to that plan late this year, after the budget process has finished up.

The courthouse is hardly the only county building in need of TLC. A recent study identified $75 million in needed maintenance and repairs at county facilities, as the executive noted in his speech.

Earlier this year, Somers announced initiatives aimed at economic development and making government leaner. That effort includes making more services available online, so fewer people have to stand in line at customer-service counters.

Somers also promised a “top-to-bottom analysis” of county government to look at ways to consolidate services. He also set a goal of increasing cash reserves that the county needs for financial stability.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @NWhaglund.