Policing Fees Proposed for Salt Lake County Budget Shortfall

11.09.2009 by Elizabeth Ziegler

(KCPW News) Even with $140 million in cuts, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon’s proposed 2010 budget still has an $11 million budget shortfall for public services. Sheriff Jim Winder is concerned with a proposal to bridge that gap with a new monthly fee for law enforcement services.  It would apply to residents and businesses in unincorporated neighborhoods.

“Politicians tend to want to dodge bullets,” Winder says. “And in this one, they’re dodging the bullet, quite frankly, on the backs of law enforcement. And that is a concern to me.”

Winder says the proposed fee increase is really a budgetary “shift” that makes it look like the newly created Unified Police District is costing residents more money than they expected. He says this is unfair, given that the Sheriff’s Office is currently doing more with about 7 percent less funding.

But County Councilman Jim Bradley says whether it’s a fee increase or property tax increase, the funding for the new police district has to come from somewhere.  He notes that some organizations that would receive police services are exempt from paying property taxes, so he prefers a fee hike.
“So in really tough times, you’ve got to protect your essential services,” Brardley says. “Public safety is clearly an essential service. There’s not enough sales tax, you have to generate it somewhere else. And fees I think is the most equitable and fair way to do that.”

Bradley, Mayor Corroon and County Councilman Michael Jensen are the county’s representatives on the police district board. They’ll decide next week whether to fix the $11 million budget shortfall with a property tax increase or monthly fee.