People of North Bend! We do ourselves great service grasping the complexities of our municipal finances. So, yes, as former Mayor John Briggs suggested in his earlier letter, don't drink any Kool Aid! Verify for yourself at the upcoming budget meetings, May 14 & 15 in Council Chambers.
Meetings are open to everyone joining in person or through YouTube. Public comments can be made at the meeting or submitted in advance. Meetings are recorded.
While I am glad Mr. Briggs is actively participating through his letters, I'm at odds with his perspective on how we fund public safety -- expenses that far exceed what we collect from property taxes annually.
We need to scrutinize our dependency on unpredictable, often one-time, sources that supplement the taxes intended to pay for public safety. Mr. Briggs insistence that all is well reminds me of juggling undependable part-time jobs to make ends meet.
I don't think it's effective policy. It's certainly a difficult way to live.
I call upon former Mayor Briggs and others who share his skepticism to review lessons from our recent past. Why use your energy to vilify those who shed light on these issues instead of learning? And I'm not talking about me, here. I'm speaking about our dedicated city staff who have tirelessly pointed out these challenges, across the years.
Take, for instance, the 2019 Budget Message from former City Administrator Terence O’Connor, who alerted us to our city's fiscal hurdles over the following 12 years. He highlighted a significant deficit in public safety funding exceeding $1.3 million and the controversial adoption of a public safety fee as a stopgap (see for yourself, page 2: https://tinyurl.com/bdfmaabp).
This fee, initially set at $5 in August 2017, soared to $30 by May 2019, echoing then Police Chief Robert Kappelman’s urgent call for sufficient funds to sustain 24/7 police coverage.
Yet, with the enactment of Measures 6-176 & 6-177 in May 2020, which capped these fees, tour police presence has fallen to merely two officers on patrol at any given time -- the only way, seems to me, to accommodate 24/7 policing.
In the FY2024 budget, a whopping 85% of North Bend’s property taxes go to provide public safety. The remaining covers everything else: parks and recreation, administration, finance, etc.
See this by peeling back the budget onion. Working capital resources pay our bills as we wait for tax revenues to start rolling in late fall. Take what remains: using all general fund revenues including public safety fee and contracted services with the tribes, public safety still absorbs 61% of annual general fund. IMO, our ability to divert more to public safety is near zero, as all of our teams run extremely lean, sometimes only one person per function.
This raises a critical question: Is further reducing our police force reasonable? And this doesn't scratch the surface of fire safety and the broader scope of what our taxes are intended to support.
Perhaps people need a refresher on our somewhat more distant past, as I did not too long ago.
The establishment of caps on property taxes in the 1990's substantially reduced the main funding artery for vital services, including public safety across numerous cities. This adjustment was so significant that some Oregon cities began to allocate more towards public safety than the property tax revenues they received.
Amidst grappling with these financial shifts, Oregon faced a prolonged economic downturn towards decade's end, marked by two recessions, which led to stunted growth in personal income and, consequently, property tax collections. This challenge was further intensified by the recent pandemic, placing additional financial burdens on household budgets.
As the cost of living and our community's growth accelerates, so does the demand for city services. In these times, municipalities are at the helm, confronting key issues that affect our communities, including steps addressing homelessness. We are also contending with the effects of public safety reforms such as Measure 110, despite a partial rollback. The goal remains to uphold these crucial services, despite the diminishing primary revenue sources. Reaching that goal, however, is much more difficult.
Food for thought: it's morbidly fun to compare our municipal budgets to, say, our Walmart's store sales at approximately $50-60 million per year. Resources for our city's extensive responsibilities are positively dwarfed by a single store's sales with responsibilities towards none.
So, yes, we have complexities and limitations in spades. We are in this together, like it or not. Looking forward to seeing you at the meetings!
Jenny Jones
North Bend
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