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Thurston County commissioners restore $950,000 for courts, trim TC Connect funding and approve preliminary biennial budget
Summary
Thurston County commissioners voted Oct. 22 to reallocate $950,000—$450,000 to Superior Court, $250,000 to the county clerk and $250,000 to juvenile court—by reducing TC Connect spending and using non-departmental savings, and advanced a preliminary 2026–27 budget for formal consideration in December.
Thurston County commissioners agreed Oct. 22 to reallocate county budget resources to reduce proposed cuts for court operations and approved a preliminary biennial budget with several specified amendments.
At the start of the afternoon budget discussion, County Manager Leonard Hernandez told the board staff had identified roughly $450,000 of available funds within non-departmental (countywide) services and proposed reducing TC Connect program funding from $3,000,000 for the 2026–27 biennium to $2,000,000 (shaving $500,000 in each year) as a way to free additional resources. “Our recommendation would be that $500,000 of it remains ongoing, and that $1.5 is a one time,” Hernandez said, adding staff would retain flexibility pending TC Connect steering-committee work with the county’s consultant Baker Tilly.
That change, combined with the $450,000 identified in non-departmental, produced about $950,000 in funds commissioners could apply to the…
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