[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-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],{"_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",6486149,"mediaKeyId","5825914-5cd242d5efea71f9a8f98525017d53d2","parentId",5825914,"title","Thurston County to correct ditch-district list, move toward adopting flood-hazard mitigation plan","audioSeconds",383,"startMs",77000,"endMs",460000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5825914-5cd242d5efea71f9a8f98525017d53d2&start=77&end=460","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5825914-5cd242d5efea71f9a8f98525017d53d2/thumbnail_77000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6486149/Thurston-County/Washington/Thurston-County-to-correct-ditch-district-list-move-toward-adopting-flood-hazard-mitigation-plan","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6486149-5ead275d21d98468e204f9190458951f/orig.mp4?Expires=1776014773&Signature=j9iCmkpZXOgIAcPOcvneAOZ8b4zkInzRoYcvtXyH5cyR1GtYOzVAEkLSHsbGUvqY2Y7r1kB6S6dcGKsWCfvvk6vlF7velSK0FkGbUCKPI4iiQMTUPjcNgAATAS76lLDJHDeE0-AQZEBSNOapCSaGRnKihzA3EfQEHXX5BkjFskQetJvXZvp2NIGVRiS4clwQHQ9WybYI4PJ7ZJNBBYpWtijamdLmUsGiJYhsbZJFH1B-RHgIMEf-FVip~5IlV0mB9-Dyo4GX0hGC55wvntxiuctHqz4YQmPcUFXXjNNGShcp5PzimfdEodQAHtiCzNUEZTWL0Osm8LWNr7ZMUhfDDA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Thurston County Washington","date","2025-09-25T16:11:39.593Z","article","Thurston County commissioners on Sept. 24 directed staff to correct the county's ditch-district table and move forward with adoption of the Flood Hazard Mitigation Plan (FHMP) after hearing a staff summary and follow-up to a recent public hearing.

The FHMP update documents county flood hazards, mitigation initiatives and updated maps and data intended to satisfy Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requirements for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). A staff presentation said about 600 county property owners currently benefit from NFIP premium reductions and that failing to complete the plan could jeopardize those discounts.

Planning staff framed the document as a FEMA-compliance plan with a narrow scope: it does not add regulations or change development standards, and it does not supersede the county's drainage manual, stormwater rules or technical fish-passage projects. \"This is really a FEMA FEMA compliance document, in its simplest terms,\" said Ashley, planning staff, describing the update. She said the update includes new outreach materials, newly installed stream gauges, updated demographic baselines and maps reflecting 2025 conditions.

Staff told the board much of the public comment received at the recent hearing raised issues that fall outside FEMA's required plan scope and are better addressed in other documents such as the county comprehensive plan, the stormwater manual, or the shoreline master program now under state review by the Washington State Department of Ecology. \"Comments that we received are outside of FEMA's required scope,\" Ashley said, adding the plan as written meets FEMA's scope and its principal purpose is to maintain NFIP premium reductions for property owners.

During the discussion the board authorized a staff correction to the plan's table of ditch districts after staff said county GeoData had included incomplete information and the treasurer's office had provided corrected details. A board member asked, \"Can we do a motion to update the table on ditch districts?\" Commissioners signaled assent with a thumbs-up and no objection was voiced. Staff said that a thumbs-up would be sufficient to make the update and that the plan would be returned for adoption on the board's next department agenda on the 30th.

The FHMP also references coordination with independent entities such as Tacoma Power and local ditch districts; staff emphasized the county cannot compel independent utilities or special districts to change operations but can improve communication and coordination in mitigation planning. Staff also noted the county's new Shoreline Master Program remains under state review and could affect shoreline protections when Ecology completes its review.

Next steps: staff will correct and update the ditch-district table as directed, incorporate that change into remarks for the department agenda item, and present the updated FHMP for adoption at the board's department agenda on the 30th. FEMA's submission deadline referenced by staff is Oct. 15.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","September 24, 2025 Thurston County Board of County Commissioners Meeting.","oneSentenceSummary","County planning staff told commissioners the Flood Hazard Mitigation Plan meets FEMA scope; the board agreed to correct a ditch-district table and proceed toward adopting the updated plan at its next meeting.","taxTitle","Thurston County, Washington","taxId",4614,"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},6486144,"Thurston County commissioners tentatively apply $10M to ease 2026 budget cuts; set priorities for $7.5M in restorations",4820,505000,5325000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5825914-5cd242d5efea71f9a8f98525017d53d2&start=505&end=5325","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5825914-5cd242d5efea71f9a8f98525017d53d2/thumbnail_505000.jpg","/articles/6486144/Thurston-County/Washington/Thurston-County-commissioners-tentatively-apply-10M-to-ease-2026-budget-cuts-set-priorities-for-75M-in-restorations","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6486144-6afc03fcff54638e82b59a7b6ce3f1c8/orig.mp4?Expires=1776014773&Signature=OCEFW5Xk1IkP6p7gro4DGI~c5Ca7bDxJKjQ0Pl0PSheuZYU7~cAJ6efy~Dd4UEm47mwOcKFG9dWbuHz26zYU9FfT6u8aJpjZ2Yj1UASYEcb6YlBds5XoTSFbIzjG~V8ZW1crv1xODxd8u5NHpPT6fWSGWPuPqInUImleeVKDAR~dbiLM6AL1lOHV5~Dw9M0gwtRxlhFz2Hclo0xIjlfBAJBOM4ecjojAqT4588cLZyfurMUykglR8OaPNxjx8jRPzunXovKJVr0o~iVN9PNLR0vMo6YyNWfAAOYNVrL4Y5StkZV3cPSxFI2AbUWx6ikDDCv38uYxjGi-jxVAL-vH6g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Thurston County commissioners on Sept. 24 reached informal agreement to apply $10 million toward the county's proposed 2026 budget reductions, lowering an initial worst-case target and leaving roughly $7.5 million for targeted restorations and office-specific requests.

County leaders said the $10 million would reduce across-the-board reduction targets from roughly 26% to about 17.5% and that the board would reconvene on Friday, Sept. 26 at 1:30 p.m. to decide how to allocate the remaining funds to specific offices and departments. County staff described the 17.5% scenario as a new baseline; staff called the tan column their new \"worst-case\" scenario if the board confirmed the $10 million reapplication.

Commissioners discussed multiple high-priority, small-budget operations that they did not want to pare back heavily, including Emergency Management, the Treasurer's Office, Coroner, Assessor, and certain court services. Several commissioners cautioned against cutting district court before completion of an ongoing rate study and interlocal negotiations. \"I couldn't agree more with Commissioner Mejia. I was actually gonna recommend that we don't cut district court at all because of the potential revenue that will be brought in with the rate study,\" said Commissioner Grant. Staff confirmed a rate-study timeline: first quarter of next year, with subsequent negotiation and interlocal agreement activity stretching into 2026.

Budget staff provided several numerical examples during the discussion. Under the earlier 17.5% exercise, staff said district court's proposed reduction target was $1.264 million; commissioners calculated that fully eliminating that cut would require roughly $851,000 from the pool of available restoration dollars. Staff also described corrections scenarios: an initial $7.7 million reduction scenario could shrink to roughly $5.1 million when the $10 million is applied, and to $3.6 million under a larger restoration scenario. Staff cautioned that some sheriff and corrections cuts could raise implementation risks because minimum staffing is required to operate the jail safely and reductions can increase overtime costs.

The board also discussed staffing vacancy data that staff said were out-of-date and had not been vetted with departments. \"The information, of vacancies and the associated dollar amount wasn't intended to be included in this report out,\" Summer, budget staff, said, recommending removal of that data point from deliberations until verified.

Commissioners flagged other decision points for follow-up, including: final sheriff/public-safety sales-tax allocations and maintenance-of-effort calculations; the district court rate study and subsequent interlocal agreements with Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater; options for revenue and non-revenue offsets (for example, fee changes, furloughs or COLA adjustments); and potential program transfers (for example, fairgrounds or cultural-access ideas) to shift costs away from the general fund.

The board gave staff direction to prepare detailed allocations and to invite, as needed, department representatives to answer targeted operational questions during the coming sessions. Commissioners tentatively agreed to the $10 million reapplication concept by thumbs-up; staff will present an itemized restoration plan for the approximately $7.5 million plus any additional revenue changes when the board reconvenes.

Next steps: staff will refine numbers, vet vacancy and contract details with departments, and return to the board on Friday at 1:30 p.m. with a motion-ready set of allocations and any new revenue assumptions for board action.","In a Sept. 24 working session, the Board agreed in principle to apply $10 million to reduce proposed department cuts and directed staff to return with allocations for roughly $7.5 million in targeted restorations. Commissioners flagged emergency management, assessor, coroner, treasurer and court services as high priorities.","actionData","errors"]

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Thurston County to correct ditch-district list, move toward adopting flood-hazard mitigation plan

Thurston County commissioners tentatively apply $10M to ease 2026 budget cuts; set priorities for $7.5M in restorations