Concerns about staffing in the Clark County Sheriff’s Office have been a long time in the making. As the issue reaches critical mass, it is instructive to recall the anti-tax sentiment that dominated the Clark County Council over the past decade.
According to the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, Clark County has the lowest per-capita rate of deputies in the state — 0.57 per 1,000 population. By comparison, the Vancouver Police Department has 1.15 officers per 1,000 residents.
The impact of short staffing was driven home last week. Sheriff Chuck Atkins (who is not running for re-election in November) announced that deputies will no longer respond to certain calls for service by the end of this month. Instead, some callers will be referred to an online reporting system or encouraged to contact the desk deputy during regular business hours.
Among the complaints that will be diverted: Misdemeanor theft of property less than $750; theft from a vehicle when suspect information is unavailable; minor assaults; and welfare checks when there is no apparent threat to the public.
The declaration, in essence, is an invitation to criminals. It announces that we are, indeed, moving closer to a lawless society.
“Never in my 40-year law enforcement career, until last year, would I have imagined … having to take such measures,” Atkins said in a statement. “I have communicated to the county council the urgency of taking immediate action with staffing solutions so that we can adequately protect and safeguard our community.”
The Clark County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild echoed Atkins’ sentiment: “Community members tell us daily they are fed up with the increases in lawlessness in our county. … We want to be there for you when you need us. Unfortunately, our county’s absence of commitment to your safety leaves us potentially unavailable at your time of need.”
Therein lies the problem, but it is one made possible by Washington’s tax system and one that was inherited by the current county council.
In 2001, statewide voters approved Initiative 747. This prevents individual taxing districts (such as a county government) from increasing its property tax levy by more than 1 percent annually. A taxing entity may bank that increase each year up to a maximum 5 percent increase.
Even if the permissible 1 percent increase is taken, it does not keep up with inflation. The result, over time, is a diminishing of services such as law enforcement.
In the middle of the previous decade, an irresponsible county council took pride in rejecting any levy increase, despite the fact that inflation and an expanding population called for an increase to the county budget. Now, we are paying for this shortsighted approach.
In recent years, the county council has been more inclined to take the 1 percent levy increase, although members rejected it for the 2022 budget.
Sheriff’s department employees have called for the county to compete with recruiting bonuses offered by other law enforcement agencies. And Clark County Council Chair Karen Bowerman noted that staffing levels are part of collective bargaining agreements; they are not the purview of the county council, but that council sets the budget.
Regardless of the potential solutions, there is a lesson to be found in a decline of protection from the sheriff’s office: Adequate public services require more than wishful thinking; they require money and a responsible government that is willing to provide it.
