THURSTON COUNTY, Wash. — Thurston County voters are being asked to raise taxes to generate funding for public safety agencies.
Sheriff Derek Sanders, Prosecutor Jon Tunheim, Auditor Mary Hall and Thurston County’s commissioners have endorsed the proposal of a .2% sales tax increase.
Under Proposition One, 75% of the funding raised would go towards the sheriff’s office. The remaining 25% would be allocated to public defenders, the auditor’s office and the prosecuting attorney’s office.
“We’ve had cases in delay ever since the court shut down,” said Tunheim.
He said the additional funding would allow him to hire new deputy prosecutors and support staff to tackle a backlog of unprocessed cases dating back to 2020 and a pandemic shutdown of the courthouse.
“We do have people calling our office, checking on their case saying, 'What's the status?’ And we have to say, 'At this point, we just don't have the ability to file it, but it's in the queue,' it feels like the check's in the mail,” said Tunheim.
He said his office also needs more deputies to handle the county’s growth and an increase in cases.
“The trend seems to say that crime is on the increase which means more work for us,” said Tunheim.
A spokesperson for County Auditor Mary Hall said the funding would help pay for security upgrades, like the installation of metal detectors at Thurston County’s election headquarters.
The spokesperson said the current facility does not have space for federally recommended security upgrades.
Sanders declared a staffing emergency for the sheriff’s office last month.
Sanders said he needed to move lieutenants and sergeants out of the office and onto the roads to relieve deputies working mandatory overtime shifts, and in some cases, without backup needed to perform their jobs safely.
County resident Jon Pettit wrote the opposition essay for the Thurston County Voter’s Pamphlet.
Pettit said existing taxes provide enough funding for the county to operate without having to threaten voters.
“I've been saying for years we need more deputies on the road but we don't need to be subject to either: you pay us this extra money, or you live in danger," said Pettit.
According to Interim County Manager Robin Campbell, the new tax would generate $14.3 million per year.
Of that amount, $8.5 million would come to the county, and $5.8 million would be distributed to the cities, said a county spokesperson.
If it passes, the tax will go into effect on April 1, 2024. According to the spokesperson, an estimated $8.3 million would be generated in 2024.