CC Minutes - 05/13/08 Joint Elected Officials

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Councilor Bettman suggested they look strategically at the programs that would be cut or reinstated. She said they should look at how to preserve the highest risk programs. Commissioner Dwyer said this seemed sensible. He acknowledged that each community had its preferences in terms of what it deemed important and suggested that, like adopting a highway, the communities adopt a program. He averred that he did not care which one the jurisdictions adopted, they should just “adopt one.” Commissioner Fleenor observed that the County had performed a zero-based budget process. He stated that it had funded the programs that were state and federally mandated and had run out of money. He said this was why the commissioners were asking the cities to adopt a program. Commissioner Dwyer related that the State would be willing to take on some of the services but it would bill the County for those services. He said if the County could not pay its bill, the State would then withhold other sources of funding such as gas tax money. He added that the State would charge more than the County to provide the services. Commissioner Faye Stewart provided an opportunity for public safety representatives in attendance to speak. Lane County Sheriff Russ Burger underscored the difficult time the community was facing. He stated that 48 jail beds would be available for local offenders in the proposed budget. He did not think people grasped what was being considered. He encouraged those present to watch the evening’s budget presentation as they would attempt to “paint a picture” of what the cuts really meant to the community. He said from his perspective the cuts that the County was facing in public safety would translate directly into human suffering. He suggested that if any programs were added back they should go to public safety first. Eugene Police Chief Bob Lehner related that the proposals that had been discussed by the council were targeted toward what happened if the system fell apart. He underscored that continuing on the present course meant the system would fall apart. He declared that the increase in victimization would be intolerable. He felt the need for a long-term discussion on this was obvious. He said they should not forget that the most critical drop in services would be at the end of May, and he predicted that by the very next day there would be dangerous offenders loose in the community; repeat offenders would cease to be prosecuted, and victimization of area residents would increase to an intolerable level. He stated that this was the City of Eugene’s immediate focus. He felt the conversations with the City’s counterparts in the County had been fruitful. Springfield Police Chief Jerry Smith was not convinced the public understood the numbers. He related that two weeks earlier Springfield Police had arrested two men for ambushing a third man and shooting him in the head. The victim survived. He stated that a few days later the Springfield Police were notified that the two perpetrators were being considered for release because of capacity issues. He remarked that the jail was at 90 beds at present, but to only have 48 beds was not really a jail. He predicted that the budget cuts would impact the citizens of both Eugene and Springfield. Springfield Fire Chief Dennis Murphy said the role of the Fire Department was to avoid unnecessary duplication and to focus on performance. He stated that the public expected the departments to ignore geo- political boundaries. He remarked that when one is in a serious accident, one does not notice within or outside of what boundaries the accident has occurred. He explained that the ambulance service operations of Eugene and Springfield covered approximately 2,000 square miles of central Lane County and both cities MINUTES—Joint Elected Officials— May 13, 2008 Page 7 Lane Board of County Commissioners and Eugene and Springfield City Councils