Budget Agreement Will Boost Sheriff’s Department Roster

The Spokane County Sheriff’s Department will hire six deputies and four corporals next year as part of a budget agreement with county commissioners.

Commissioners held their final 1996 budget hearing Monday and said they’ll put the $223 million package to bed on Dec. 11, as required by Washington law.

Most of the budget includes departments, such as roads and buildings, that generate their own revenues.

Commissioners are considering a general fund budget of about $83.7 million, or 2.8 percent more than this year’s spending package of $81.4 million. The general fund primarily is based on property and sales tax revenues.

The general fund is increasing despite 3.5 percent across-the-board cuts made in most departments. The increase is due to several factors, including nearly $1 million in new spending for the sheriff’s department.

In addition, salaries and benefits will increase nearly $3.3 million and courthouse security will cost $276,000.

Public Defender Don Westerman said his $3.4 million budget is $370,000 short of what he needs to handle a burgeoning caseload. His cases jumped by 1,000 to nearly 13,000 this year, he said, while he has two fewer staff members today than in years past.

Without the money to hire three new attorneys, a legal intern, a staff assistant and two part-timers from Gonzaga Law School, “we’ll be in desperate shape,” Westerman said.

He also needs money to contract out cases in which his office has conflicts of interest, such as past representation of defendants or witnesses.

“Cases are assigned to us and we can’t turn them away,” Westerman said.

Should Westerman run out of money next year, he can either negotiate with county commissioners or, as a last resort, sue them.

Commissioner Steve Hasson said he and his colleagues have been “magicians” in the past month just trying to get the sheriff through 1995 with overtime expenses.

“Our grab bag of tricks is empty,” Hasson said.

, DataTimes