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the mean average personal income tax in Oregon is about $2,200. <br /> <br />Taylor asked if there would be savings if people were placed in drug court instead of in jail. <br /> <br />Maine responded that is why there is support--to add capacity to the entire system. <br /> <br />Leonard responded there is currently a drug court and people are being diverted. He mentioned by <br />implementing the drug court and expanding it that there would be an excess of jail beds. He added <br />there will still be more demand for jail beds than they have space. He added it is effective in freeing <br />up jail beds and decreasing the rate of recidivism among those who are in the program. <br /> <br />Taylor asked if a custody referee would take the place of a parole officer and why one couldn't <br />perform the job. <br /> <br />Leonard explained that there are not enough parole and probation officers in the County who could <br />effectively handle the people that have already been sentenced and are either out on probation or have <br />served time in a state institution and are back in the community. He said the custody referee deals <br />with a different population, administering the pre-trial release program for people that are awaiting <br />trial and are either held in jail or will be released pending jail. He added the custody referee also <br />handles the request for court appointed attorneys. He said if they are able to increase the staffing of <br />the custody referee office, they can decrease the rate of people who fail to appear in court to about <br />20%--down from 80% or 90%. <br /> <br />Kelly stated he was happy they were working together on a regional basis. He thanked the finance <br />committee for the courage to propose a different kind of revenue source. He said he supported using <br />the income tax surcharge rather than a property tax. He noted that working regionally allows for <br />coordination of resources, like one jail serving all the jurisdictions. He added it was important to go <br />to voters once about the importance of a revenue share component for public safety. He said he was <br />happy that prevention to consequences had been preserved. He shared Taylor's concern about low <br />income on income taxes. He recommended that the sunset be for as long as possible. He noted that <br />population may determine the revenue share, but it deserved a close look before the ballot measure <br />language gets put together. He wanted to make sure that each jurisdiction does maintain its own <br />local control over responsibility. <br /> <br />Scott Meisner, City of Eugene, seconded Kelly's comments. He said he will support the broad <br />countywide program and services and the revenue sharing component. He said this will allow paying <br />for local needs. He said he is glad that there is a need to fund administration and evaluation, but is <br />surprised to find that it is less than 1% of the total. He said with regard to revenue sharing, local <br />communities know best what their needs are and what this revenue sharing implementing ordinance <br />provides for is a balancing with a need for coordination, evaluation and outcomes. He noted that <br />Tollenaar brought them a proposal on June 24th of $1.2 million and now it is $1.85 million for <br /> <br />Page 7 -- Lane County Joint Elected Officials Meeting -- June 30, 1999 <br />WP bclm1990751M <br /> <br /> <br />