[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6236849,"mediaKeyId","3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce","parentId",3353887,"title","Police staffing, 24-hour coverage and police station funding dominate committee questions","audioSeconds",530,"startMs",5286000,"endMs",5816000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce&start=5286&end=5816","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce/thumbnail_5286000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6236849/St-Helens/Columbia-County/Oregon/Police-staffing-24-hour-coverage-and-police-station-funding-dominate-committee-questions","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6236849-b9b7a5c0188eb129f157a7ece0e841ff/orig.mp4?Expires=1771005575&Signature=Rx1GyF747jyWHwkMAny1x2Y5BCwX6X5k88wtpiR0-53GZ3nM1dchr0bHq1Y~VYz8YjqMCN1ulCxkxnJ3zVFy~2yZ~MuzVEXSxQ6gG70YXTdCROz4dTvC1Vz6hX43TybpRpn59h1hwwkt-ltY6so2ByEuYZUPBx9KK~x0syF~9smeCTZ1hGu8WSNMUgrdvcaIRKjwHTXuDV82Oox2PjDICHI8BlOs4MCxLQY4S6tSzp3D19~Hz3IAEN3BdPixi2fQ3dTDX1JfXRubIyOyteWRmpxPd~W1z21Dtb~BOKbpEUXJc0v6vsatcY7cM~-nwRqpV4T1ta3z3RaFwRLW488F6Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City Council of St. Helens, OR","date","2025-05-16T16:38:05Z","article","Budget committee members focused prolonged questioning on the St. Helens Police Department’s staffing, overtime exposure and the city’s police facility plans during the May 15 session.

Finance staff described proposed police personnel-services spending of roughly $5.335 million in the coming fiscal year and an estimated year-to-date cost of about $5.047 million. Chief Hogue — summarized in staff responses at the meeting — said the department could maintain 24-hour patrol coverage with the current proposed staffing but that gaps have been covered with overtime while vacancies are filled. “We cannot reduce the size of the department and maintain 24-hour coverage as overtime is currently being used to cover the patrol hours,” staff reported quoting the chief.

Several committee members asked the chief to appear at the next budget meeting to answer detailed questions about how many sworn officers are required, overtime exposure and whether detective and school-resource positions are required to maintain current service levels. Staff reported the proposed budget includes funding to support detectives and a school-resource officer and indicated intergovernmental revenue from the school district would offset the cost of any SRO assignment.

Separately, the committee discussed the police-station project. Council members and staff reiterated that the city currently has $12.6 million identified for the station; members asked whether supplemental funds from pending property sales could be applied if the final construction cost exceeds that amount. Staff said revenues from property sales are timing-dependent and would require supplemental budgeting if realized after adoption of the fiscal-year budget.

No decision on police staffing levels or on a station-construction commitment was made at the meeting. The committee scheduled additional review and requested the police chief attend the next session to answer operational and cost questions.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","5/15/2025 St. Helens Budget Committee Meeting #2","oneSentenceSummary","Budget committee members pressed staff May 15 on whether the St. Helens Police Department can maintain 24-hour coverage under reduced-staffing scenarios and on funding for a proposed police station.","taxTitle","St. Helens, Columbia County, Oregon","taxId",52788,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6236858,"St. Helens budget committee weighs utility fee, furloughs and hiring freezes to close gap",499,511000,11968,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce&start=511&end=11","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce/thumbnail_511000.jpg","/articles/6236858/St-Helens/Columbia-County/Oregon/St-Helens-budget-committee-weighs-utility-fee-furloughs-and-hiring-freezes-to-close-gap","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6236858-15736d0cdd94d27d88f1c99f6080b402/orig.mp4?Expires=1771005575&Signature=BP6uaEMZtvlgo-QVK0jCSXXzFVksc6bovxbVdcpizMcw42m~B92xKO6N4PaO6bk-d6bQGrDvjaZdCY-JDSajp4lJu7pRTeiF0NL7IKgIQYpUGxxpTThcl9WANaDoK6UuTH3Fl~9eqpKg3JKsEirif~UvWL8omJjr55vQwVl8YidhGk0~cqDKJzj4OkTxvEAQIDG5QMgx3Kehpcz8QKgVqAJQp6GN4Ks1qb~rxjRKDQLogl2dAc3v8k40~n3Y~gHJsN14rMlNab9ItVDUJjuVc2YQGvHu-t7uzwyyoiicdiVKhQ4LmmilQERqqbg2NFVGfdat20Fna-iNk0Xkw3F81g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","St. Helens budget committee members spent nearly three hours on May 15 weighing alternatives to close a projected general-fund shortfall, including a proposed $42.10 monthly utility surcharge and smaller options that mix employee furloughs, pay freezes and new fees.

The committee and staff framed three primary scenarios: the original $42.10 public safety/general service fee; a $16 monthly fee combined with a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and 12 furlough days per year for most staff; and a $13.70 fee paired with no COLAs, no furloughs and a hiring freeze. Staff presented additional revenue ideas such as a $10-per-month business-license charge on multiunit residential rentals, a $220-per-month commercial rental fee, and an event-ticket impact fee estimated at $4.95 per ticket.

The discussion matters because committee members must balance maintaining services — notably police, library and recreation operations — against a shrinking reserve fund. Maria Butch, finance director and budget officer, told the committee that the package of staff revisions would reduce the proposed $42.10 approach to lower-fee options and that reducing the reserve fund from 17% to 10% was the lowest fiscally responsible alternative presented.

Dozens of residents used the three-minute public-comment period to urge the committee not to adopt a large water surcharge. “If each one of those [5,000 housing] units is charged about $42, that’s going to generate around $280,000,” said Nicholas Helmick, a community member and former Community Action Team employee. Several speakers said the fee would force low-income residents and seniors to choose between food, medicine and utilities.

Union and staff concerns also featured in the meeting. Tyler Hills, president of AFSCME Local 1789, representing city workers, opposed furloughs, calling a single monthly furlough day “a 4.6% decrease in pay” for affected employees and urging the committee to seek alternatives that do not reduce employee pay. Kathy Payne, the city’s human-resources coordinator and city recorder, said she opposed furloughs, freeze of merit increases or cuts to retirement benefits and encouraged “a minimal increase in the public service fee” rather than pay reductions to frontline staff.

Committee members pressed staff on the mechanics and consequences of each option. Staff answered that a $16 fee scenario with furloughs and a 2.5% COLA would roughly replace the larger fee by combining personnel-service reductions (an estimated $549,500 from furloughs/hiring pauses), paused vehicle replacement and reduced professional development (about $104,000) and new/expanded fees. The $13.70 scenario assumes no COLA, a hiring freeze and other reductions and would rely on existing contract negotiations with represented employees to hold wage growth down.

No formal decision was adopted at the meeting. Committee members requested that Police Chief Hogue appear at the next meeting to explain whether 24‑hour patrol coverage could be maintained under reduced staffing scenarios and asked staff to return with the revised revenue and reduction assumptions. The budget committee set a follow-up meeting for May 29 to continue deliberations.","St. Helens budget committee members spent nearly three hours on May 15 weighing alternatives to close a projected general-fund shortfall, including a proposed $42.10 monthly utility surcharge and smaller options that mix employee furloughs, pay freezes and new fees.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6236844,"Committee questions tourism contractor returns after Halloweentown revenue and cost review",1280,7910000,9190000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce&start=7910&end=9190","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce/thumbnail_7910000.jpg","/articles/6236844/St-Helens/Columbia-County/Oregon/Committee-questions-tourism-contractor-returns-after-Halloweentown-revenue-and-cost-review","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6236844-e33df3fa2c5075ef6a1cb9455f80467b/orig.mp4?Expires=1771005575&Signature=fvf9Jot-WKq~Y~Yzo36SbRyu3beu-oZkd1Nt04PJCmQ3qPcGdnG-bxEY83Hmbu6-lKKQSWe-IiunAiehoI4VbxFC8AjWnrxWJU6ZrD6vwAAm-QlIHg9VEWikiDw~P1aDE7HGPagmQR5JFIvgbTb7edbH7oDYNSHAI-OkSKgmHFoqEpPF39eiNdOczAgZTgnG9WwqJseRQLaaRZ-ZH-qvlxnnFxmcSUIDskwr3EAZL9MhI4Lq-xPDviSJPShsHKM167ZMmhCHns1VyWWdgf2mZyHYbgcababfFszJVrZ5WYxV8CV01A4byanUY~Dgm5NfmUy4Qot~wraMtpuDBd5ZxA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Budget committee members pushed staff on May 15 to seek higher returns from the city’s tourism program after reviewing the first-year results of the new event-contractor arrangement for Halloweentown and other activities.

Councilors and committee members said they were surprised that the tourism program’s gross event revenues approached $1.3 million in the prior year but that the city realized about $100,000 into the general fund after repaying $200,000 in startup funding and reinvesting proceeds into event production. Some members called for stronger contractual protections and higher direct returns to the general fund.

Staff said the tourism program’s budget is conservatively built and that the tourism fund carried an anticipated fund balance after expenses; page 59 of staff slides included a projected fund balance of roughly $106,000 after expenses for the coming cycle. Staff noted that a proposed $4.95 impact fee on event tickets would send revenues directly to the general fund and estimated roughly $127,000 annual revenue from that fee based on last year’s ticket sales.

Committee members suggested setting a higher revenue expectation for the tourism contractor, exploring reserves and surplus property sales as alternatives to household fees, and convening a tourism advisory group. No contractual action was taken; staff were asked to return with revised projections and to clarify how event revenues flow between the tourism fund and the general fund.","Members expressed concern that the city’s tourism contract and event spending returned limited general-fund dollars despite large gross event revenues; staff said $200,000 seed funding was repaid and the fund is expected to hold a modest positive balance but recommended conservative budgeting.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6236853,"Residents urge budget committee not to cut St. Helens library hours or staff",6291,648000,6939000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce&start=648&end=6939","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3353887-cf1c16b03574adc97883d1cfca8e9dce/thumbnail_648000.jpg","/articles/6236853/St-Helens/Columbia-County/Oregon/Residents-urge-budget-committee-not-to-cut-St-Helens-library-hours-or-staff","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6236853-1d6cb7c68af54e181a944ec44940ff66/orig.mp4?Expires=1771005575&Signature=m8sqby0hfClUpzvjAFX1Bmxz5KztPrXKEmYr6TXjlAQZfJhNrKPUBeq3dIAcOz7XgdsaJq5VvwPW6tJQ4DTbMLxQjWi~z9B42FrhEhBKQsCiy9qFnDiPJZXMgOnKCioxxmw1miHNxu0vVCEFyziFWkngFt29kFNflvNwLJgcHcJDXQLDwv8hfT~XflTCSipDi70pv3SarO0BkZlXg7ESkrfLVVVcXO8T58JNBweJGE0IhAfPvpKUMBqtmGqtniuzBLNwR-TERDjtW53UT2ECoOhO3oWRM5AVR48XdeHoEdNFTQx0qYBD2XVaGt0xxIOsbPvQ9rTvz0D-XEp95tBJBQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Dozens of residents and library volunteers told the St. Helens budget committee on May 15 that proposed cuts to the public library’s staff or hours would harm children, seniors and small businesses and could make the facility ineligible for state funding.

Ellen Jacobson, a library-board member and volunteer, said the library provides services that “support entrepreneurs, provide safe development, socialization opportunities for kids and teens, support individual development, and foster connections.” She added that volunteers — roughly 30 individuals who logged more than 950 hours last year — “are not employees” and cannot replace trained staff required under Oregon law.

Library Director Suzanne Bishop explained that increases in materials-and-services costs are driven largely by subscriptions and online database fees, cataloging and a near-term need to replace a security system. Bishop said the library still expects six full-time-equivalent positions (a mix of full and part-time staff) in the proposed budget; some increases in the materials-and-services line reflect one-time replacement costs.

Speakers said library programs act as informal childcare and after-school support during school furloughs and that the makerspace and youth programming reduce juvenile exposure to crime. “We need to rely on our library to offer a lot of public services that we don’t get any other way,” said Alana Gilston, who said she has used the makerspace for projects and civic engagement.

Kathy Payne, the city’s human-resources coordinator and city recorder, noted the city maintains the building under an agreement with the Columbia Learning Center board and that the city will assume ownership of the facility in 2035 under current arrangements.

The committee did not adopt any cuts to library staffing at the meeting. Members asked staff to review materials-and-services subscriptions to identify potential reductions and to return with revised numbers at the next session.","Multiple residents, library-board members and volunteers told the budget committee that cuts to library staffing and hours would remove critical programs, cost state funding eligibility, and harm families and seniors. Library leaders said volunteers supplement but cannot replace professional staff.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Police staffing, 24-hour coverage and police station funding dominate committee questions

St. Helens budget committee weighs utility fee, furloughs and hiring freezes to close gap

Committee questions tourism contractor returns after Halloweentown revenue and cost review

Residents urge budget committee not to cut St. Helens library hours or staff