Budget shortfall plan evolving

Wahkiakum County officials are continuing to work on a plan to deal with a $1 million budget shortfall for 2008.

Officials are adjusting to an error in Department of Natural Resources accounting which mistakenly allotted them timber sale revenue that should have gone to another timber trust beneficiary.

Commissioners Dan Cothren and Blair Brady said Tuesday they hope to get through 2008 without making drastic cuts to county programs, but that may happen in 2009.

The officials said a combination of reductions and cuts in service and borrowing or transfers from reserve funds may help them make it through 2008 without drastic cuts. The shortfall is hitting the Current Expense Fund, which finances most courthouse activities such as the sheriff's office, jail, courts, auditor, treasurer, clerk, commissioners, building, and assessor. The Road Department and Health and Human Services have other funding sources and are impacted to the same degree as the Current Expense Fund departments.

Officials have hoped to borrow or transfer money out of their Cumulative Reserve for Contingent Liabilities, but Prosecuting Attorney Dan Bigelow said they may meet opposition from the office of the Washington State Auditor. The fund is intended to be able to cover obligations to employees such as vacation pay and unemployment benefits.

Bigelow said auditors recently gave him a verbal opinion stating the county could use the funds for other obligations only if they were being sued.

Officials suggested the courthouse employees union very likely could make such a threat if the county lacked other funds to cover payroll.

Treasurer Paula Holloway said the county has enough cash on hand to cover the July payroll, which will be paid in early August. After that, however, there won't be sufficient funds. She calculated that the payroll averaging over $300,000 per month, the county would need $1.5 million to complete the year.

Officials also said they could take issues to voters to approve transfers in reserve funds or even increasing taxes. Even if approved, the revenues from new taxes wouldn't be collected until next year at the earliest,

Brady and Cothren said they don't want to raise taxes, but it might be something people have to consider. Brady said he doubted a measure to increase taxes would pass, but presenting the ballot measure to the voters would demonstrate the depth of the county's precarious position.

Instead, the commissioners said they would like to start with cutting programs which aren't mandated by state law.

He recommended the county ask voters this year to approve formation of a county-wide park service district and tax levy to cover expenses of municipal pool, Johnson Park, County Line and Buffington parks. A levy of 28 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value would raise about $111,000 per year, enough to cover the expenses.

If approved, the move would free up the same amount of funds currently spent on the facilities. If the levy weren't approved, the services would be cut, Brady said.

Brady suggested that the County Road Department could pay the sheriff's department for patrolling and other activities that benefit county roads.

Public Works Director Pete Ringen acknowledged that this is done in other counties, including Lewis, where he worked before coming to Wahkiakum. However, he warned that taking funds from the Road Department would likely decrease the county's ability to maintain the roads, which, he said, are crucial to the citizens and economy of the count.

Commissioners also talked about reducing the hours courthouse offices are open.

That could have pitfalls, officials said.

For example, Health and Human Services programs are funded by reimbursable contracts; if the employee doesn't work the hours and provide the service, the county can't bill for reimbursement under the contract.

And if salary hours and benefits are reduced by having a reduced work week, the department won't keep its professionals, said Administrator Judy Bright.

Cothren said he is still working with DNR foresters to develop timber sales that will generate revenue this year and next.

The agency can put up a sale under $300,000 without going through the extensive review process needed for large sales, he said, and the agency is working on one for this fall. Other large sales should generate some down payment and right-of-way logging revenue this year and next, but it won't solve the problem, Cothren said.

"I'm just buying us some time," he said.

Later in their meeting, the board passed a resolution approving a transfer of $83,590 from the Commulative Reserve for Emergency Expenditures to the Current Expense Fund to help cover expenses.

And they rejected a request from Sheriff Dan Bardsley to send a deputy to a two-day, $425 grant writing training seminar in Olympia. Instead, they Bardsley contract with Karen Bertroch, a local grant writing specialist, to provide the training.

Commissioners won't meet next Tuesday; instead they continued their Tuesday meeting to Wednesday, when The Eagle goes to press. They planned to hold a closed door, executive session with Commissioner George Trott, who is returning from several weeks of commercial fishing in Alaska, to brief him on the situation and discuss labor contract negotiations.