Cowlitz County commissioners weigh a 0.1% public‑safety sales tax as budget shortfalls loom

Cowlitz County commissioners spent a substantial portion of Monday’s meeting debating whether to pursue a one‑tenth percent public‑safety sales tax as a way to shore up the county’s general fund. Staff told the board the certification process requires documents to be submitted to the Criminal Justice Training Commission (CJTC) and that three correspondence items on tomorrow’s consent agenda need signatures before the county can apply.

The matter is unsettled: the chair (S1) argued against imposing new taxes and urged deeper spending restraint, saying the board has not voted and he intends to oppose automatic tax increases. "We just continually bleed the people in this state," the chair said, warning that repeated tax increases can drive residents and businesses away. Commissioner S7 and Commissioner S4 pushed back that the board must consider both cuts and revenue to avoid service collapse; S7 noted hiring freezes and other reductions already taken and said the county needs a stable multi‑year plan rather than living on projections.

Staff (S2) said certification by the CJTC is part of the application process for the sales tax under state law and that completing that work also prepares many grant applications the county could pursue. "To acquire that certification, there are certain documents that need to be submitted to them," staff said. A separate staff member (S9) told the board the work on the sales‑tax application aligns closely with grant applications and cited Clark County’s experience receiving a $5 million grant after similar work, adding that some jurisdictions that secured grants also approved the tax.

Sheriff Brad Thurman (S8) urged caution but argued that the county’s historically low tax rate means modest revenue may be necessary to maintain basic public‑safety and infrastructure services. "You can cut yourself to the point where people don't want to invest here," he said, urging the board to weigh service quality and long‑term costs.

No formal tax measure was proposed or approved at Monday’s meeting. Staff indicated the items necessary to begin the CJTC review will be on the consent agenda for signature; certification would come from the state review after submission, and any final local adoption would require a later board vote. Commissioners also discussed options such as a sunset clause to limit the tax’s duration and emphasized they would return with more fiscal analysis and comparisons before taking any formal action.

What’s next: staff will place the required documents on the consent agenda for signatures and return to the board after the CJTC review; any actual vote to adopt a sales tax would occur only after certification and subsequent board action.