City staff: King County proposal could add about $514,000 for probation services; decision deadline extended to May 12

Candace Martinson, Auburn's director of human resources and risk management, told the City Council on March 31 that King County District Court staff and the presiding judge have proposed returning probation services to municipalities under a full cost recovery model and preliminarily quoted Auburn about $514,000 before overhead for probation services.

Martinso n said the proposal came during March meetings with King County District Court staff and the presiding judge and that the county has told her it is facing a budget shortfall. "We are looking at a $514,000 charge before overhead costs for our probation services in addition to the costs that we pay for the interlocal agreement for municipal court services," Martinson said.

The information alters the financial comparison the council used earlier this year when it discussed leaving King County District Court services. Martinson said there was no indication before the February 1, 2025 decision date that Auburn would be asked to assume probation costs. She said the presiding judge has committed to a new deadline of May 12, 2025, for Auburn and the other contract cities to decide whether to continue contracting with King County or resume local responsibility for probation services.

Why it matters: The preliminary charge and the timeline affect a pending council choice about whether Auburn should operate its own municipal court functions or continue contracting with King County. Martinson said the potential additional charges could erase the cost savings the city expected from contracting court services.

Details and council questions

Martinso n said King County has been charging Auburn only for a limited number of clerks and judges under the current interlocal agreement, but other staff working in the Auburn courthouse 'including two probation officers and additional clerks'could be charged back if the county adopts full cost recovery. She also described a forthcoming case-waiting study that King County plans to do; if the study finds more judicial or clerk time is spent on Auburn cases, those costs could be billed back to the city.

Martinso n told the council the city is "50% of King County District Court's probation budgets," a figure she said during the briefing. She also said the estimate provided to Auburn is preliminary and that the $514,000 figure does not yet include overhead or any additional reconciling charges tied to case counts.

Councilmember Kate Baldwin asked for clarification on the dollar amount and whether the county's reference to "overhead charges" represented new costs beyond the existing interlocal agreement; Martinson said the $514,000 was described to her as a new charge and that she did not yet have a final reconciled number. Martinson said reconciliations are typically about six months behind case counts, and that Auburn's 2024 case-count reconciliation will post in mid-2025.

Comparisons and options

Martinso n cited the City of Bellevue as a comparison: Bellevue contracts with King County District Court but runs probation services through its human services department. She said Bellevue shared that its human services budget that includes probation is about $1,900,000. Auburn staff have discussed the possibility of providing probation services locally and have begun preliminary conversations with Auburn's Human Services Director, Kent Hay.

Next steps

Martinso n said she has scheduled and will participate in further meetings with King County District Court staff; she identified an initial interjurisdictional probation discussion as scheduled for April 7. She told council members she would continue to brief them as more concrete numbers and the results of the case-waiting study become available.

Budget status and closing

Martinso n told the council the potential probation charge is currently unbudgeted. Council members asked follow-up questions; Martinson emphasized the preliminary nature of the county's estimate and that she would return with updated figures and clarifications on what would or would not be charged back to Auburn.

Ending

City staff said they will continue to pursue details from King County and to brief the council before the May 12 decision deadline. The council did not take a formal vote on court services during the March 31 study session.