News
Truth revealed about JoCo finances - Opinion - Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Opinion
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Truth revealed about JoCo finances
By John Harelson for the Daily Courier
The truth about the criminal justice funding problem in Josephine
County is undeniable. The 2008-2009 budget will spend the last of the
accumulated savings available to the criminal justice system. In
2009-2010, the county will not be able to adequately pay for the jail,
patrol, prosecution, juvenile justice and other services without new
funding sources. Payments from the O&C "safety net" have run out.
Hearing the truth of the matter is difficult due to the political rhetoric of
the various loud voices involved in Josephine County politics. I
sincerely hope the following will help the reader get a better
understanding of the truth of Josephine County's financial condition.
It is true that the entire current 2007-2008 county budget totals a bit
over $101 million. It is also true that a bit over $53 million of this
budget comes from outside sources. Nearly $30 million is carry-over
reserves (think savings accounts), and $18 million is internal transfers
between county departments (required by accounting rules). The
majority of these outside revenues and reserves are dedicated funds,
which can be spent on only certain activities.
The 2007-2008 spendable funds are allocated as follows: $11.6 million
for criminal justice activities, $1.9 million on other activities, and $9.3
million is saved in reserves.
The four biggest revenue sources in the 2007-2008 budget are the
one-year extension to the O&C "safety net" of $12 million, carry-over
reserves from prior years of $6.1 million, property taxes of $3.1 million
and timber profits from county-owned forests of $600,000.
The proposed budget for the fiscal year starting July 1 has no O&C
revenue and uses up most of the reserves. Other than the reserves, less
than $5 million of outside spendable revenue will be available in
2008-2009, primarily from local property taxes. After the 2008-2009
budget year, essentially no reserves will be available for expenses of
the general government or the criminal justice system.
The Josephine County commissioners have cut expenses in anticipation
of the end of the O&C payments and managed to minimally fund the
transition year of 2008-2009 to allow the voters some more time to
decide the future of county services.
The Josephine County Task Force on Long Term Funding for Public
Safety recently issued its final report and made a number of
recommendations. They first offered several suggestions to promote
operational efficiencies, asked for more understandable budget
information and then addressed the criminal justice funding problem.
The task force made a number of suggestions for raising O&C
replacement funding dedicated to the criminal justice system. The
suggestions include a fee on aggregate mining, a fee on new home
construction and a consumption tax on non-food items (excluding
drugs). The task force report also recommended the establishment of a
two-tiered taxing district, one for the countywide criminal justice
system, and the other providing for patrol service and detectives
outside the city of Grants Pass.
Any tax proposals would require approval by the voters of Josephine
County. The task force stressed the importance of a broad revenue
base to lessen the burden on the property-tax payers. The task force
also emphasized the need to reduce the amount of property taxes
imposed by any alternative revenue sources received, including any
receipts from the O&C timberlands.
No one likes to talk about increased burdens on the property-tax payers
of Josephine County. Some folks are struggling to pay taxes at the
current levels and over 200 property owners have taken advantage of
the senior citizens' property tax deferral program. The county
administration has shown by its actions that it is committed to keeping
property owners in their homes.
In the coming months, citizens will begin the dialog of how to pay for
the criminal justice system. I ask that you listen closely to what is said
and seek the truth. There are no easy answers to the pressing
questions, and some loud voices will be trying to confuse you about the
truth. The voters of Josephine County should demand the truth from
their elected officials and those running for office. The truth should also
be demanded from the news media, whether broadcast-, print- or
Internet-based.
Those in positions of influence who only criticize and offer no viable
solutions should not be allowed to perpetuate the lie that easy answers
exist for solving the criminal justice funding problem. It is my belief
that the good people of Josephine County will find an alternative to the
coming collapse of the criminal justice system.
o o o
John Harelson has been Josephine County treasurer since 1996.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Truth revealed about JoCo finances
By John Harelson for the Daily Courier
The truth about the criminal justice funding problem in Josephine
County is undeniable. The 2008-2009 budget will spend the last of the
accumulated savings available to the criminal justice system. In
2009-2010, the county will not be able to adequately pay for the jail,
patrol, prosecution, juvenile justice and other services without new
funding sources. Payments from the O&C "safety net" have run out.
Hearing the truth of the matter is difficult due to the political rhetoric of
the various loud voices involved in Josephine County politics. I
sincerely hope the following will help the reader get a better
understanding of the truth of Josephine County's financial condition.
It is true that the entire current 2007-2008 county budget totals a bit
over $101 million. It is also true that a bit over $53 million of this
budget comes from outside sources. Nearly $30 million is carry-over
reserves (think savings accounts), and $18 million is internal transfers
between county departments (required by accounting rules). The
majority of these outside revenues and reserves are dedicated funds,
which can be spent on only certain activities.
The 2007-2008 spendable funds are allocated as follows: $11.6 million
for criminal justice activities, $1.9 million on other activities, and $9.3
million is saved in reserves.
The four biggest revenue sources in the 2007-2008 budget are the
one-year extension to the O&C "safety net" of $12 million, carry-over
reserves from prior years of $6.1 million, property taxes of $3.1 million
and timber profits from county-owned forests of $600,000.
The proposed budget for the fiscal year starting July 1 has no O&C
revenue and uses up most of the reserves. Other than the reserves, less
than $5 million of outside spendable revenue will be available in
2008-2009, primarily from local property taxes. After the 2008-2009
budget year, essentially no reserves will be available for expenses of
the general government or the criminal justice system.
The Josephine County commissioners have cut expenses in anticipation
of the end of the O&C payments and managed to minimally fund the
transition year of 2008-2009 to allow the voters some more time to
decide the future of county services.
The Josephine County Task Force on Long Term Funding for Public
Safety recently issued its final report and made a number of
recommendations. They first offered several suggestions to promote
operational efficiencies, asked for more understandable budget
information and then addressed the criminal justice funding problem.
The task force made a number of suggestions for raising O&C
replacement funding dedicated to the criminal justice system. The
suggestions include a fee on aggregate mining, a fee on new home
construction and a consumption tax on non-food items (excluding
drugs). The task force report also recommended the establishment of a
two-tiered taxing district, one for the countywide criminal justice
system, and the other providing for patrol service and detectives
outside the city of Grants Pass.
Any tax proposals would require approval by the voters of Josephine
County. The task force stressed the importance of a broad revenue
base to lessen the burden on the property-tax payers. The task force
also emphasized the need to reduce the amount of property taxes
imposed by any alternative revenue sources received, including any
receipts from the O&C timberlands.
No one likes to talk about increased burdens on the property-tax payers
of Josephine County. Some folks are struggling to pay taxes at the
current levels and over 200 property owners have taken advantage of
the senior citizens' property tax deferral program. The county
administration has shown by its actions that it is committed to keeping
property owners in their homes.
In the coming months, citizens will begin the dialog of how to pay for
the criminal justice system. I ask that you listen closely to what is said
and seek the truth. There are no easy answers to the pressing
questions, and some loud voices will be trying to confuse you about the
truth. The voters of Josephine County should demand the truth from
their elected officials and those running for office. The truth should also
be demanded from the news media, whether broadcast-, print- or
Internet-based.
Those in positions of influence who only criticize and offer no viable
solutions should not be allowed to perpetuate the lie that easy answers
exist for solving the criminal justice funding problem. It is my belief
that the good people of Josephine County will find an alternative to the
coming collapse of the criminal justice system.
o o o
John Harelson has been Josephine County treasurer since 1996.
