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Washington County officials brief Tualatin council on public safety and library levies
Summary
County officials presented a replacement public safety levy (≈$0.66/$1,000 assessed value) to fund prosecution, jail capacity and victim services and a replacement library levy (37¢/$1,000) to fund WCCLS central services; councilors pressed for program breakdowns and local allocation details.
Washington County officials and the Washington County Cooperative Library Services (WCCLS) staff briefed the Tualatin City Council on Aug. 11 about two ballot measures the county plans to place before voters.
Public safety levy presentation: District Attorney Kevin Barton and sheriff’s office representatives described a proposed replacement local option levy at roughly $0.66 per $1,000 of assessed value (about $6 more per month for a typical homeowner in the county). The county estimates the measure would raise roughly $337 million over five years and help fund countywide prosecution, jail operations, victim services (including the Family Justice/Peace Center), community corrections and specialty interagency teams including mental‑health response teams (MHRTs).
Barton said the levy is intended to maintain and expand critical services and warned of substantial staffing and service cuts if the levy fails. He and county staff cited data points including increased child‑abuse reporting (noting a 17% rise in reports over recent years) and jail capacity challenges that have led to thousands of releases for lack of beds this year.
Councilors repeatedly requested more granular breakdowns — what share of levy dollars fund prosecution, jail, probation/community corrections, MHRTs, victim services and interagency units, and how allocations would be distributed geographically. County officials said they would provide detailed program percentages and clarifications for council review.
Library levy presentation: WCCLS staff described Measure 34‑345, a proposed replacement levy at 37¢ per $1,000 assessed value (estimated $129/year for a homeowner with $348,600 assessed value) that would replace an expiring 22¢ levy and fund operating hours, collection purchases (including a large centralized e‑book budget), courier/central services and programs supporting student success across 16 locations.
Several councilors pressed the county and WCCLS on allocation methodology, noting Tualatin’s distinct service needs (cooling center functions, high library usage) and asking how the centralization of collections and allocation changes would affect local hours and local collection autonomy. WCCLS said no library would receive less revenue overall and that a consulting process with library directors will define centralized collection operations.
Presenters asked for council support and said they would return with more detailed cost breakdowns and program allocations.
