Duress at city halls

We’ve heard it before and we’re hearing it again: The economy is pummeling local governments with a one-two punch of dwindling tax revenue and ever-climbing expenses. The hurt isn’t going to stop anytime soon. Snohomish County and area cities are preparing budgets for next year, and just about every

community is anticipating less revenue.

Already, there are fewer people on government payrolls than just a few years ago. Here’s what to expect.

Shrinking staffs

Payroll is the biggest part of city operating budgets. It’s an expense that creeps upward with cost-of-living pay bumps a

nd ever-rising health care costs. To control labor costs, cities are laying off workers, implementing furloughs or holding open positions when employees leave. A sampling of local governments shows the numbers of full-time employees down compared to four years ago.

Less for services

“Do more with less” works to a point. People still expect the potholes filled and phones answered, even if there are fewer government employees. Communities deal with that strain by cutting back on hours or taking longer to complete a job. It’s no longer possible, for instance, to immediately reach a human being by phone to ask a question at the county’s four district courts.

Public safety cuts

Officials are loath to make cuts to fire and police departments. But with most of the fat trimmed elsewhere, emergency services aren’t sacrosanct. In Snohomish, city leaders are moving toward contracting with the county for police services. In Everett, some people convicted of lesser crimes might receive alternative punishments to help the city lower the jail bill.

New fees and taxes

Some cities have found ways to make up for diminishing sales and property tax collections by coming up with new revenue streams, big and small. Traffic-enforcement cameras are perhaps the most notorious solution. In other cases, it’s more fees for services. Lynnwood and Edmonds, for example, have imposed $20 car-tab fees to pay for road improvements.

General fund budgets under pressure

Municipality	Everett	Lynnwood	Snohomish	Snohomish County
Population	103,019	35,836	9,098	713,335
Full-time-equivalent employees in 2008	747.4	382.0	64.5	3,024.90
Full-time-equivalent employees in 2012	744.2	?	32.3	2,643.48
Change	-3.2	—	-32.2	-381.43
Revenue 2008	$113,101,536	$45,500,000	$7,884,114	$207,552,294
Revenue 2012	$110,000,000	$47,300,000	$7,116,674	$205,296,068
Change	-$3,101,536	$1,800,000	-$767,440	-$2,256,226
Expense 2008	$108,026,629	$45,400,000	$7,780,310	$210,690,491
Expense 2012	$110,000,000	$48,300,000	$7,924,455	$206,266,068
Change	$1,973,371	$2,900,000	$144,145	-$4,424,423
Projected revenue shortfall in 2012*	$0	-$1,000,000	-$807,781	-$970,000

* These differences will be resolved to zero through expenditure cuts as respective budget processes unfold.

Service cuts implemented and planned

Snohomish County

The staff at Snohomish County’s four district courts no longer take calls from the public. Calls are answered by an automated service. The change created a dramatic increase in calls to the clerks at Snohomish County Superior Court from people seeking help with district court cases.

The auditor’s office is now closed during lunch and shuts down early on Fridays, making it harder for people to record documents or obtain licenses for pets or vehicles.

And animal control officers who patrol the unincorporated portion of Snohomish County no longer have time to deal with barking or loose dogs. They’ve seen their staff cut by a quarter since 2008. They are down to handling only the highest-priority calls, such as dog bites, attacks on livestock and cruelty cases.

Everett

In Everett, non-union employees won’t get a cost-of-living bump in 2012. Neither will the mayor nor the City Council. Nobody is expected to be laid off, but up to a dozen vacant positions will go away. As employees leave next year, many of those positions will remain unfilled, too.

Snohomish

The city of Snohomish has abandoned all major street maintenance projects for two years.

And Snohomish leaders are moving toward outsourcing the police force. That’s why the number of the city’s full-time employees might drop by half next year. The city would still have to pay for police services, but the move is expected to initially save around $350,000 a year and double that over five years.

Lynnwood

Lynnwood is a little different because the city is on a two-year budget cycle. Officials now are adjusting the 2011-12 budget, including making job cuts, to avoid coming up millions of dollars short.

Monroe

Monroe police no longer respond to fender-benders in parking lots. There also is no parking enforcement on weekends.

Mill Creek

It is harder to get help at Mill Creek’s building permits window, which is now closed Fridays. Inspectors also are available fewer hours.