CC Minutes - 04/09/08 Work Session

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adoption, the Board would engage in public outreach to the citizens in Florence, Cottage Grove, and Pleasant Hill in order to explain the budget to citizens. Mr. Clark thanked Mr. Stewart for his presentation. He commented that he was “at a loss to see this coming to an unfortunate reality.” He asked what the City’s response could be. He wondered if the City could increase the number of beds it rented from the jail and how much this would cost. Mr. Stewart replied that the Sheriff was looking for ways to creatively keep more than 12 beds through the budget. He said one of the outcomes of the Joint Elected Officials meeting was a desire to conserve public safety. He had scheduled a meeting with the police chiefs, fire chiefs, district attorneys, mayors, and administrators to look at opportunities for ways to address this situation that could be presented to elected officials. He stated that there were different steps that could add beds back, with the first step adding 61 beds back to the jail for $150,000. He thought there would be opportunities for cities to step up and offer to buy beds. Mr. Clark related that he had spoken with Eugene Police Department (EPD) Chief Bob Lehner about the possibility of hiring some of the LCSO staff that would be laid off. He asked how many sworn officers the 126 employees included. Mr. Stewart responded that he was not certain. Mr. Clark wondered how many of those officers the City could absorb. Mr. Clark asked what date lay off notices would have to be provided to staff. Mr. Stewart replied that he had been told that the process could not be started any later than June. Ms. Taylor asked why the grant writing position was not being retained for the Commission on Children and Families. Mr. Stewart responded that the commissioners and staff had been forced to look down the list as to where to make cuts and the determining factor was whether something generated revenue and paid for itself. He explained that though the grant writing position brought in money for programs, the position did not pay for itself. Ms. Taylor asked if there were any potential taxes that could be exacted. Mr. Stewart replied that the County could not raise taxes without a vote, it could only increase fees. He added that the timeline for placing a tax measure on the ballot was such that it would be impossible to put one on the May ballot. Ms. Taylor asked if private timber harvest could be taxed. Mr. Stewart did not know whether the County could impose such a tax legally. Ms. Taylor asserted that the money for those timber interests did not come back to the County. Mr. Stewart responded that he believed the money did come back to the County through different programs but he was not certain of the amount. He said citizens had brought this before the Board as a suggestion and a “colleague or two” of his had some interest in the item. Mr. Zelenka asked for a clarification on why, historically, the property tax rate in Lane County was low and why it could not be increased. Mr. Stewart confirmed that Lane County assessed taxes at a rate of $1.28 per $1,000 assessed value of real property while the majority of counties in Oregon assessed a rate of $3 to $4.50 per $1,000 assessed value. He explained that when Lane County could have increased its property tax rate it did not do so because no one had foreseen the drop in the timber economy and then Ballot Measures 47 and 50 had locked the rate at that level and made it so the only way it could be changed was through a vote. Mr. Zelenka asked how many counties there were in Oregon. Mr. Stewart replied that there were 36; Lane County was among the poorest, with only Curry and Josephine counties below it. MINUTES—Eugene City Council April 9, 2008 Page 7 Work Session