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County warns of $350,000 shortfall if cities cut police contracts; schedules detailed work sessions
Summary
After cities told county representatives that contract costs are high and asked for flexibility, commissioners heard that a loss of contract revenue could create a roughly $350,000 budget hole; the board set a timeline for options, a city meeting and a June 16 work session to seek solutions.
County leaders spent the longest portion of the session on public safety contracts after city clerks and mayors said the current contract price is too high and requested greater flexibility.
A commissioner warned the board that if cities reduce or stop contracting for law-enforcement services "we have roughly a $350,000 hole in our budget," and said the county must explore alternative models. The sheriff and other commissioners explained the services cities receive include patrol hours, dispatching, records management and interoperability benefits that are costly to provide.
The board agreed on a multi-step schedule: require all five contracted towns to sign by the county's first May meeting (to avoid piecemeal outcomes), present a list of options at the June 2 meeting, meet with city representatives on June 3 to review details, and hold a public work session June 16 to gather input and finalize a recommended approach. Commissioners said the work should include analytics on calls and service levels so the county can propose cost-allocation models tied to actual service use.
No immediate policy change was adopted; the board tasked the public safety committee with developing options and presenting them to the full board before any contractual changes.
