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Wednesday, November 29, 2006
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Sheriff's department resists cuts No fat left, just meat, Gaalswyk says Senior Reporter The Crow Wing County Sheriff's Department on Tuesday strongly disagreed with recommended department budget cuts for 2007 and appeared to gain county board support.
Crow Wing County commissioners discussed budget recommendations Tuesday afternoon. Representatives from the sheriff's department argued in favor of reinstating about $115,225 to their overall budget. In the end, Board Chairman Ed Larsen suggested adding $100,000 back to the sheriff's budget, with final decisions coming Dec. 12.
In September, the county board approved a $33,500,000 proposed tax levy for 2007, which was a 6.95 percent increase over 2006. By choosing a 6.95 percent increase, the board had to make $466,100 in cuts. The board's original goal was to hold to a 5 percent increase from 2006 to 2007, and newly hired David Hamilton, county administrator, said he'd work toward the 5 percent goal after meeting with departments.
Tuesday's recommendations to the board called for a 5.44 percent increase in the tax levy for 2007, which means trimming another $472,693. A 6.95 percent levy increase equals $2,178,140; 5.44-percent levy increase equals $1,705,449.
The sheriff's department said the cuts went beyond fat and into the meat. Lt. Neal Gaalswyk spoke for the department, saying so many line items were cut that the department was wondering if it would have enough money to feed K-9s. With the recommended levy, the sheriff's department's budget was increasing 2.5 percent over 2006.
In a note to commissioners, Sheriff Eric Klang reported that the department agreed to a number of cuts, but found key areas of dispute. Klang was on vacation Tuesday. Gaalswyk said two main issues of contention related to a $36,000-a-year building rental on Southwest Fourth and Laurel streets in Brainerd and $57,000 in new office furniture for the Law Enforcement Center's dispatch. The LEC dispatch center was last upgraded in 1997.
A suggested budget cut discontinued the building rental and moved sheriff's department equipment to several locations throughout the county. The plan called for boat and trailer equipment to be stored in Crosslake.
Gaalswyk said a centralized Brainerd area location was key in terms of response time to life-and-death situations. He said responding to an emergency on Rabbit Lake would require driving to Crosslake to get the boat, adding more than an hour to the trip. Responding from Brainerd meant a matter of 15 minutes before Gaalswyk said he could be on the road and heading for the scene. Sheriff-elect Todd Dahl said he agreed whole-heartedly with the need for a central location.
Board Chairman Ed Larsen said renting space for the long term was a waste of money. Gaalswyk said an earlier plan to build a central storage center by the new highway department offices at the Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport was scrapped when that money was needed elsewhere for the county campus project.
Government should struggle a little to make due like the blue-collar people who pay taxes, Commissioner Dewey Tautges said. "And I'm not sure we do," he said.
Commissioner Terry Sluss suggested a compromise, saying safety was a chief public concern. Commissioner John Ferrari agreed that protection was needed in a growing county, but he said that the county did not know how much it will cost to run the county's new buildings. The new jail is expected to open in May 2007.
Tuesday recommendations to the board called for a 2007 proposed budget with $62,965,935 in expenditures, $30,655,970 in revenues, a tax levy of $33,027,309 and a reserve of $717,344.
The board expects to continue budget discussions and adopt the final 2007 budget and tax levy at its Dec. 12 meeting. But residents will have an earlier opportunity to discuss the budget with the board at the Truth in Taxation public hearing at 7 p.m. Dec. 7 on the courthouse's second floor on Laurel Street in Brainerd.
RENEE RICHARDSON can be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.
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