Tue 22 Apr 2008
We all should be on top of the county budget — because of the holes it leaves when it gets gutted. We are heading for difficult times, with hundreds of layoffs of county employees, with the disappearance of the county animal shelter and services (LCAS), with the huge cuts in prevention and women, infants, and children (WIC). And we knew this was coming but couldn’t develop the policy that both sides could support.
So we talk budgets. At Davis’s. On April 30th at 7pm. And there will be Rob Handy. And there will be Bobby Green. And several others to talk about the state (ie. county) we find ourselves in. Only a few blocks away, the City of Eugene will be discussing its budget — and in what ways we can help do what is best for the area.
April 23rd, 2008 at 6:21 am
Rural Oregon uses these County resources the most, while the metropolitan areas pay the most.
If people want to live and thrive in rural areas, they’re going to need to learn how to be self-reliant. Isn’t that the point of moving to the country? Swim or move.
With Eugene’s unemployment rate already at 6.1%, and growing class sizes in the City’s schools, there’s little room to help another budget.
April 23rd, 2008 at 11:25 am
Mike,
Glad to see you post on this. You as well as anyone know we are likely to face some very tough choices at the city. I have a piece written by the ADA, Alex Gardner, that is chock full of details about the effects on Lane County public safety. Happy to email it to anyone who wants to see it, just send me a note. I’ve asked for a Council poll to have a work session about what the city’s response should be. Hope we can get that before budget is complete.
April 23rd, 2008 at 7:00 pm
KMTR ran a story on the pink slips already given out to Lane County employees and the looming cuts to several other key services, most critically (to me) in Youth Services.
http://www.kmtr.com/mediacenter/local.aspx
April 23rd, 2008 at 7:22 pm
The Budget Committee schedule is as follows:
Tuesday, April 29. 6:15-9pm: Budget Message and public hearing. The evening includes an overview of the budget and the County’s property tax revenue. The public hearing is from 7:30-9pm
Thursday, May 1, 5:15-9pm: Focus on roads, parks, waste and land management. Public comment is from 8-9pm.
Tuesday, May 6, 5:15-9pm: Prevention and Social Services. System focus includes Children & Families, Human Services Commission and Veterans Services, Animal Services, Developmental Disabilities, and Extension Services. Public comment is from 8-9pm.
Thursday, May 8, 5:15-9pm: Health and Emergency Management. System focus includes Public Health, Mental Health, and Emergency Management services. Public comment is from 8-9pm.
Tuesday, May 13, 5:15-9pm: Public Safety. System focus includes Prosecution, Police Services, Corrections, Youth Services, Supervision, and Treatment for offenders. Public comment is from 8-9pm.
Thursday, May 15, 5:15-9pm: Budget Committee deliberations. (possible second date on May 22nd if needed)
April 24th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Luke — it’s true, there is a huge imbalance in terms of use of city services by people who aren’t paying those taxes. The way the taxes are setup, eugene residents are paying the same county taxes as those in unincorporated areas. as the county taxes go for some services that benefit everyone in the county, some that benefit some of the bigger cities more, and some that are the city-like services that the county provides to residents of unincorporated areas. There should be a difference in tax rates because of that last category — so that county residents can explicitly choose what levels of services they are getting being in that area.
April 24th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
Mike — there will definitely have to be a long discussion on how the county’s situation changes things, and what the possible short and long term solutions should be.
And i’m sure we’ll be talking about those in our six 4-hour meetings during the next month!
April 24th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
I’m not sure that I agree with you Luke. But if you live in the country maybe you could speak more from your experience. My father just recently moved into town from near Triangle Lake and I can tell you that they NEVER saw a cop out there unless there was a murder.
When I worked at the domestic violence shelter, it was well known that the really bad abusers made their families move to the country because they could avoid getting caught (NOT that rural people are more violent, simply that it is easier to get away with it and isolate your family).
Anyway, cities need rural areas to support them too. We wouldn’t have any food if we didn’t have rural residents to grow it. We wouldn’t have clean air and water without stands of forest, wetlands, etc. to filter out our urban pollution. Also, if you are talking about public health services, like communicable disease control, it is in cities that population density makes epidemics a possibility.
County residents need the cities for their markets, for trading purposes, for cultural and education centers, to get connected with the wider world.
But I think it is unfair to make such a simplistic argument. Besides, look at income — people in cities have jobs that pay a lot more, too.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t look at how we raise money for public services, but it is divisive and unproductive to claim ruralites or urbanites share the brundt of the blame.