In the past four years, the Spokane County Sheriff's Office has lost more than 30 commissioned deputies to budget cuts. In the past three months, unincorporated areas in Spokane County saw residential burglaries increase more than 50 percent. If crime is on the rise and a lack of funds is shrinking the presence of law enforcement in our area, what should be done?
Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich wants to ask voters to add two tenths of a cent to the sales tax rate in Spokane County to boost county and city law enforcement budgets. He asked county commissioners last week to put the measure on the November ballot, but they instead asked for more information.
While we're always skeptical when a public agency wants more money, we're also sympathetic to the Sheriff's plight because when it comes right down to it, his problem is really the citizens' problem. As his department's budget has shrunk in recent years, sheriff's deputies who have kept their jobs have been stretched thin. While the ranks have thinned in the sheriff's office, the population of Spokane County has grown. By next year, Knezovich said that there will be .65 deputies on the streets for every thousand residents, down from 1.06 per thousand in 2008.
It's likely there simply aren't enough cops patrolling the streets and the back roads, and it seems that criminals have seen an opportunity in that. Burglaries at rural homes and businesses—many of them right here on the West Plains—have exploded so far this year. The Sheriff was able to commit more attention to the problem and they've made a rash of arrests, but the department is already over budget, facing a $660,000 shortfall in July.
Some might say you can't solve a problem by throwing money at it. But in this case, we think a small addition to the sales tax rate is a fair price to pay to boost law enforcement in the county so that we can retain or improve the levels we have now. Times are tough, we know, but we as a community don't want to go backward waiting for the economy to turn around. If we all chip in a few dollars, we can keep the Sheriff's Office strong. Plus, under state law part of the proceeds would go to city departments (60 percent to the county and 40 percent divided between cities), so our local law enforcement organizations would get a boost as well.
While we support putting the tax measure to a vote, we also hope that if it goes forward, Knezovich and his supporters will use the opportunity to inform people about law enforcement and be open to criticism citizens may have. Too often law enforcement organizations are hesitant to discuss their problems or take suggestions. Cops work to keep our communities safe, and they put themselves in harm's way to do that; the substantial budgets that go to law enforcement are necessary, but these organizations need to remember citizens are paying for their operations and they need to get the most value out of the coffers.
Find ways to save money, streamline processes and make the organization more friendly to the public. A campaign for a tax increase for law enforcement is a perfect time to have those discussions. We hope to see those discussions advance in the coming months.
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