St. Helens council weighs 20% furlough proposal as police overtime drives shortfall

St. Helens city leaders and residents spent the bulk of the April 1 work session debating how to close a projected shortfall in the city’s general fund, with staff presenting three options that range from furloughs to layoffs or program cuts.

City Administrator John told the council staff had begun the process to balance the budget and framed three approaches if a proposed $24 general-service fee does not pass: a furlough-first plan that would reduce employee schedules to about 32 hours weekly (roughly a 20% pay cut), targeted layoffs consistent with bargaining agreements, or program reductions and service suspensions. He said a 90-day bargaining period constrains how quickly labor changes could be imposed.

Those proposals drew immediate pushback from Tyler Hills, who identified himself as president of ASME Local 1789, the union representing city employees. “We’re here to express our strong objection to the proposed furloughs which may amount to a 20% reduction in pay,” Hills said, warning the cut would harm employees and have lasting impacts on Oregon PERS retirement calculations.

Multiple public commenters and an independent financial analyst pointed the council’s attention toward police overtime as a primary driver of the deficit. Grant Tosski, who said he reviewed city audits and financial records, told the council the police department had spent $284,000 in overtime year-to-date—about 96% of its annual overtime allocation—and was on pace to overspend by roughly $268,000. He estimated unapproved police overspending could exceed $540,000 for 2026 and urged immediate controls on overtime and completion of outstanding audits.

Council members and staff emphasized the complexity of police scheduling and the operational need for overtime in response to critical incidents. Police Chief Smith defended overtime as essential during major investigations and other emergencies, saying officers often must remain on scene beyond scheduled shifts. He added that filling vacant positions and training new officers takes many months: “It is 14 to 16 months to take a brand-new hire and turn them into a police officer,” he said, noting the department currently had several officers in field-training status.

Chief Smith also said the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) began covering overnight hours for St. Helens the night before the meeting and would continue through about Aug. 1 while several officers finish training. Council members asked for data on response times and agreed to weekly coordination meetings to monitor the arrangement.

City finance staff and the city administrator said police costs make up roughly half of the general fund and acknowledged the department’s outsized share of expenditures while arguing a mix of one-time revenues and underbudgeted line items in previous years also contributed to the structural deficit. Staff stressed that many other departments are operating within their budgets and that charging utility funds does not cover services such as police, municipal court or library operations.

Several councilors signaled they would be open to symbolic reductions in council stipends to match employee sacrifices, though they and staff cautioned such gestures would have limited impact on the structural gap. The council asked staff to prepare options for the budget committee and to continue negotiations with bargaining units; no formal vote on furloughs or layoffs occurred at the session.

Next steps: staff will refine the budget-balancing scenarios, provide additional financial detail and timing tied to bargaining obligations, and report back at future meetings and to the budget committee.