For the first time since 2009, King County’s budget proposal has no cuts in it. Efficiencies and cost savings are to thank, County Executive Dow Constantine said when he presented his 2012 budget proposal to the County Council on Sept. 26.

“My proposed budget is balanced, with no further cuts to services in the General Fund, by working with employees to make this government more efficient,” Constantine said. “Surrounded everywhere by seas of red ink, we have made King County an island of relative stability.”

Constantine’s budget is $5.3 billion, with $648 million in the General Fund.

A year ago, King County had projected it would have a $20 million shortfall in next year’s budget.

But with cost-cutting and improved operations, “that deficit has been more than wiped out,” Constantine said.

The largest savings came from a projected $61 million in savings over the next two years to the county’s employee health care costs. That includes $38 million in 2012.

Constantine credited the health care cost savings to the county’s Healthy Incentives program.

“Clearly, our employees’ health and the county’s fiscal health go hand in hand,” he said.

The cost reductions saved jobs in his proposed budget for sheriff’s deputies, deputy prosecutors and public health nurses.

County employees suggested efficiencies and cost-saving measures that are expected to save the county $32 million next year, he said.

These efficiencies include consolidating computer servers for all departments into a single data center, making better use of office space and getting rid of 54 unnecessary county vehicles.

To save the county money in the future, Constantine’s budget puts $2.7 million into its rainy day fund. That would push the fund above the 6 percent level needed for the county to keep its AAA bond rating.

He also proposed setting aside $9.1 million in other reserves to buffer against uncertainty in future sales tax revenues.

Constantine also proposed creating a one-time fund of $1 million to award grants under $25,000 to nonprofit groups providing human services. Under his proposal, the grants could be used for capital improvement, technology or capacity building.

The proposed budget includes spending on collaboration with The Boeing Co. and Group Health to redesign obsolete and cumbersome business practices.

The partnership has already turned renewing license tabs by mail from a three-week process into one that takes five or fewer days.

Constantine’s budget also calls for piloting a product-based budget in six agencies that is meant to make it more apparent to the public what an agency produces and what it gets for its money.

Product-based budgeting looks at the specific services an agency provides as products that can be measured as, for example, the quality, quantity and the cost per unit of a trip on an Access van, the issuance of a marriage license or building permit or the response to a 9-1-1 call.

During his presentation, Constantine said he wants all of King County government to move to product-based budgeting within three years.

State needs to help save roads and transit

But cost savings from finding efficiencies cannot save public transit or county roads, Constantine said.

Metro Transit, which depends in large part on declining sales tax revenue, has slashed its operating budget in recent years. But the County Council still had to pass the two-year Congestion Reduction Charge in August to prevent a 17 percent cut in service.

“Long-term reform of transit financing still resides with the state Legislature,” he said.

The county doesn’t have enough money to pay for keeping up its roads and bridges, including many in the Snoqualmie Valley. The county’s Road Services Division had to lay off 81 workers this year.

Constantine included triaging road maintenance work to save money in his 2012 budget proposal.

“The success of urban annexations has left only 250,000 residents of the unincorporated areas paying for 1,600 miles of county roads used by 2 million of us,” Constantine said. “It’s a system that hasn’t been revisited in 25 years, and it’s no longer adequate or fair.”

He called on the a statewide transportation task force convened by Gov. Chris Gregoire to “create a statewide solution for deteriorating roads in rural areas, as well for transit needs in urban areas.”

Deputy Executive Fred Jarrett represents King County on the task force.

Constantine said he expects the state, which is facing a projected $1.4 billion budget shortfall, will cut money for public health and human services in the county.

“We don’t know where these cuts may come, so I have not anticipated them in my budget. But we do know they could be devastating for our neediest residents,” he said.

His budget proposal also asks the County Council to approve a supplemental appropriation to fund an effort to persuade Boeing to build its overhauled 737 jet planes in King County.

The effort includes continued cleanup of the Duwamish River and contaminated properties that could, with redevelopment and reinvestment, support manufacturing and light industrial jobs.

King County Council plans to hold public hearings on the budget and is set to adopt a final budget Nov. 21.

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com. Comment at www.snovalleystar.com.

“My proposed budget is balanced, with no further cuts to services in the General Fund, by working with employees to make this government more efficient,” Constantine said. “Surrounded everywhere by seas of red ink, we have made King County an island of relative stability.”

Constantine’s budget is $5.3 billion, with $648 million in the General Fund.

A year ago, King County had projected it would have a $20 million shortfall in next year’s budget.

But cost-cutting and improved operations, “that deficit has been more than wiped out,” Constantine said.

The largest savings came from a projected $61 million in savings over the next two years to the county’s employee health care costs. That includes $38 million in 2012.

Constantine credited the health care cost savings to the county’s Healthy Incentives program.

“Clearly, our employees’ health and the county’s fiscal health go hand in hand,” he said.

The cost reductions saved jobs in his proposed budget for sheriff’s deputies, deputy prosecutors and public health nurses.

County employees suggested efficiencies and cost-saving measures that are expected to save the county $32 million next year, he said.

These efficiencies include consolidating computer servers for all departments into a single data center, making better use of office space and getting rid of 54 unnecessary county vehicles.

To save the county money in the future, Constantine’s budget puts $2.7 million into its rainy day fund. That would push the fund above the 6 percent level needed for the county to keep its AAA bond rating.

He also proposed setting aside $9.1 million in other reserves to buffer against uncertainty in future sales tax revenues.

Constantine also proposed creating a one-time fund of $1 million to award grants under $25,000 to non-profit groups providing human services. Under his proposal, the grants could be used for capital improvement, technology or capacity building.

The proposed budget includes spending on collaboration with Boeing and Group Health to redesign obsolete and cumbersome business practices.

The partnership has already turned renewing license tabs by mail from a three-week process into one that takes five or fewer days.

Constantine’s budget also calls for piloting a product-based budget in six agencies that is meant to make it more apparent to the public what an agency produces and what they get for their money.

Product-based budgeting looks at the specific services an agency provides as products that can be measured as, for example, the quality, quantity and the cost per unit of a trip on an Access van, the issuance of a marriage license or building permit, or the response to a 9-1-1 call.

During his presentation, Constantine said he wants all of King County government to move to product-based budgeting within three years.

State needs to help save roads and transit

But cost savings from finding efficiencies cannot save public transit or county roads, Constantine said.

Metro Transit, which depends in large part on declining sales tax revenue, has slashed its operating budget in recent years. But the County Council still had to pass the two-year Congestion Reduction Charge in August to prevent a 17 percent cut in service.

“Long-term reform of transit financing still resides with the state Legislature,” he said.

The county doesn’t have enough money to pay for keeping up its roads and bridges, including many in Snoqualmie Valley. The county’s Road Services Division had to lay off 81 workers this year.

Constantine included triaging road maintenance work to save money in his 2012 budget proposal.

“The success of urban annexations has left only 250,000 residents of the unincorporated areas paying for 1,600 miles of county roads used by 2 million of us,” Constantine said. “It’s a system that hasn’t been revisited in 25 years, and it’s no longer adequate or fair.”

He called on the a statewide transportation task force convened by Gov. Chris Gregoire to “create a statewide solution for deteriorating roads in rural areas, as well for transit needs in urban areas.”

Deputy Executive Fred Jarrett represents King County on the task force.

Constantine said he expects the state, which is facing a projected $1.4 billion budget shortfall, will cut money for public health and human services in the county.

“We don’t know where these cuts may come, so I have not anticipated them in my budget. But we do know they could be devastating for our neediest residents,” he said.

His budget proposal also asks County Council to approve a supplemental appropriation to fund an effort to persuade Boeing to build its overhauled 737 jet planes in King County.

The effort includes continued cleanup of the Duwamish River and contaminated properties that could, with redevelopment and reinvestment, support manufacturing and light industrial jobs.

King County Council plans to hold public hearings on the budget and is set to adopt a final budget on Nov. 21.

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com.

The Snoqualmie City Council passed the city’s 2011 budget, which preserves existing services but raises property taxes and utility rates. The $52.6 million budget puts off filling two positions and purchasing new equipment.

The budget raises utility rates by 3 percent — from 6 percent to 9 percent — to pay for a 10-year loan to pay off debt from City Hall’s construction. The city owes $3 million on the building, which cost $7.34 million and was finished in 2009. It will pay down the debt by $1 million from reserves and cover the rest with the loan.

The council had been considering combining the debt with a bond to pay for infrastructure projects, but decided to split the two, decreasing how much interest the city pays on the City Hall debt.

“It’s very important to me to carry as little debt as possible and still provide services to the citizens,” Councilman Charles Peterson said.

In previous budget meetings, Peterson backed paying off the debt with cash.

Snoqualmie will use cash to pay down the debt, but the loan will be paid for with the utility rate increases.

“We got every bit of cash we could from elsewhere, and there just wasn’t any other options that any of us could see,” Peterson said.

The utility rates should be rolled back after the loan is paid off, he said.

“It only went up for one reason — the loan,” he said.

The budget also increases the property tax by the maximum allowed 1 percent and includes a $1.20 surcharge on each utility account per month. For a customer with all three utilities — water, sewer and storm — the total will be $3.60 a month.

In October, the city adopted a $20 car tab fee to support transportation projects.

“You always have to be concerned about (tax increases) but you have to make tough decisions,” Councilman Bob Jeans said.

The council will consider a $5 million bond to pay for infrastructure projects next year.

Snoqualmie can’t pay for the infrastructure work out of pocket. Raising utility rates and property taxes won’t give the city enough money to make adequate headway on its list of infrastructure projects, city officials said.

“We’ve ignored some of our infrastructure for a long, long time, and we need to get it resolved,” Councilwoman Kathi Prewitt said.

For the past three years, the city has delayed some maintenance projects to build up its reserves.

Putting the city in a strong financial position has helped, Prewitt said. “We’ve been able to maintain our level of service throughout this financial downturn.”

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com.

[An earlier version of this story misstated the amount of money in North Bend's downtown facade program and how much of the city's revenue comes from sales tax.]

Squeezed by the bad economy, the North Bend City Council passed an austere budget that cuts services and delays capital projects rather than raise taxes. The Council passed the budget with a 5-2 vote after contentious discussion at its Dec. 7 meeting.

The budget’s supporters said it was the best option during hard economic times, which have sapped North Bend’s revenues.

Opponents said the budget’s priorities were out of order and put off dealing with pressing problems.

The budget’s $5.8 million general fund still includes a $100,000 shortfall for paying personnel, which the city must close. It could do that with layoffs, furloughs or concessions from union employees. Mayor Ken Hearing’s administration is in the process of determining which option to use.

“No matter where it comes from, somebody is going to get hurt,” City Administrator Duncan Wilson said.

The budget cut money for human service programs, parks, downtown revitalization programs and street maintenance, among other areas.

Opponents said the cuts were misplaced.

The budget should put money into North Bend’s stagnant downtown, Councilman David Cook said. “The city’s done very little to address downtown blight.”

Instead of cutting the city’s $6,000 downtown façade program and underfunding street maintenance, North Bend should reduce its staff.

“There are departments that are overstaffed for a recession,” said Cook, who owns a real estate agency in the city’s downtown area.

Cook’s ‘no’ vote was the first time he had voted against a budget since his election in 2003, he said.

Both Cook and Alan Gothelf, who also voted against the budget, expressed frustration with the budget process.

“I don’t think we did the job to set the priorities at the beginning of the budget process,” Gothelf said.

The budget ignores problems that will only get worse with time, such as maintaining infrastructure, he said. “What we’re doing by this budget is kicking the can down the road.”

He pointed to the budget’s $100,000 for repaving streets, which is significantly less than the $300,000 needed to keep city roads from deteriorating, according to Public Works Director Ron Garrow.

“I’m concerned that we’re not making the decision for the future, but for what’s easiest today,” Gothelf said.

The Council left open the possibility of amending the budget in early 2011.

The budget’s supporters agreed that it is an unpleasant balance sheet, but said it is the best option given the bad economy.

The recession and uncertain recovery have hurt North Bend, which depends on sales tax revenue for about 34 percent of general fund. Bad weather this December could further hurt the city’s budget.

“The fact is we don’t have money,” Councilman Dee Williamson said. “That fact is not going to change: we don’t have money.”

However, the Council decided to reduce spending rather than raise taxes. North Bend’s property tax levy has not been raised in three years.

Williamson agreed that the City Council has to address several budget difficulties, such as the rising cost of benefits, likely to be around for at least several years.

find money for capital projects during the several years most economists are predicting it will take for the economy to recover.

“But we’re stuck — this year. There’s nothing we can do about it” this year, he said.

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com.

The Metropolitan King County Council adopted a $5.1 billion 2011 county budget Nov. 15 that shares the pain of cuts needed to close a $60 million shortfall.

The council’s budget team, which consists of council members, restored money for some vital criminal justice services, and programs that assist survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence.

Criminal justice and public safety services make up 76 percent of the budget’s $621 million general fund. Most of the budget’s $5.1 billion is for dedicated expenditures.

The budget protects the county’s AAA bond rating by not using cash reserves or tapping the rainy day fund.

“There were no easy cuts left in this budget,” said Councilwoman Julia Patterson in a news release. Patterson is chair of the Budget and Fiscal Management Committee.

“King County government is not immune to the realities faced by individuals and families everywhere who are tightening their belts and finding creative ways to spend their money,” she said.

Residents’ testimony at public hearings pushed the budget team to restore money for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence.

“We scrutinized costs closely and found ways to be more efficient and economical while still providing necessary services to citizens,” Councilwoman Kathy Lambert said in the release. Lambert, who represents Snoqualmie Valley, was the budget committee’s vice chair.

Under the budget cuts will be made to criminal justice and public safety.

The budget eliminates 300 county positions, some of which are currently vacant. The reductions include 28 deputies from the King County Sheriff’s Office and 16 attorneys from the prosecutor’s office. In the Superior and District Courts, 28 positions were eliminated.

Human Service programs that traditionally received some county support were also cut in the 2011 budget. There is no general fund contribution to services for at-risk mothers, early learning or after school programs.

The cuts could have been deeper, though.

“The budget cuts this year have been softened by the willingness of our labor partners/employees to ‘share the pain,’” Lambert said in a release.

The county saved money when all but one collective bargaining group agreed to give up cost of living adjustments, or COLAs. All non-union staff will not receive COLAs next year, too. The King County Police Officers’ Guild, which represents sheriff’s deputies, was the only bargaining unit to not waive its raise.

The county saved about $23.5 million, $6.1 million of which came from the general fund.

The money was used to preserve programs to prevent domestic violence and sexual assault.

“We’re adopting a responsible budget plan given the economic climate that we’re dealing with, but it will mean King County residents—particularly the most vulnerable—will have less access to services,” Councilman Larry Phillips said in a news release.

Washington State Legislators are reading one clear message in the results of the Nov. 2 election — no new taxes.

That won’t make the Legislature’s job writing a balanced budget for 2012-2013 any easier when it meets in Olympia in January. The state is expected to be short about $4.8 billion.

Raising taxes is a non-starter for many politicians after voters rejected new taxes and repealed an existing tax in several statewide tax initiatives. Voters also approved an initiative that makes it harder for the Legislature to raise new taxes.

“Those were clear, unambiguous statements from voters that we want you to live within your means,” said Rep. Glenn Anderson, a Fall City Republican who was re-elected to his seat in the 5th Legislative District.

Washington Republicans were reinvigorated by election results. The GOP picked up several seats in the state House of Representatives and in the state Senate. With several races too close to call, final numbers are not available. But Republicans certainly reduced the Democrats’ majority in Olympia.

Republicans wasted little time to seize the momentum in tackling Washington’s looming budget shortfall. The party hand delivered a letter to Gov. Chris Gregoire asking her to call for a special meeting of each party’s leadership in the Legislature to discuss budget savings.

The budget shortfall is not as big this time as it was in 2009, but it could hurt more now, said Glenn Kruper, spokesman for the state Office of Financial Management.

Last time around, the Legislature used one-time fixes worth about $5 billion and cuts of about $4 billion to bridge the budget gap. Now, legislators will have to cut another $4.8 billion.

The Legislature that convenes in January will likely be extremely reluctant to raise taxes.

“Elections are always about repositioning the Legislature,” said Paul Berendt, vice-president of Strategies 360, a Seattle-based political consultant group. Berendt chaired the state Democratic Party from 1995-2006.

In addition to the public’s defeat of tax initiatives, several Republicans were elected on anti-spending platforms.

“There’s just no appetite for tax increases,” Berendt said. “There’s going to have to be some fundamental changes in how the budget is approached.”

Specifically, both parties will have to agree on which programs make the most sense to cut, he said.

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com.

Despite careful budgeting in recent years, the recession and subsequent lackluster recovery are catching up with North Bend and Snoqualmie, and forcing the two cities to make tough decisions in their 2011 budgets.

Officials in both cities find themselves in the same predicament: Expenses are rising, and revenue is flat or falling.

“Our situation is very tenuous,” North Bend City Administrator Duncan Wilson said.

Snoqualmie’s Interim Financial Director Robert Orton echoed that sentiment in an interview with the Star.

Rising expenses

Snoqualmie and North Bend have seen their costs rise even while revenues remain flat or have fallen.

The rise in expenses has largely been driven by increases to wages and benefits, especially for North Bend.

The cost of North Bend’s contract for police services with the King County Sheriff’s Office is rising 14 percent.

The rise is in part due to scheduled salary increases in the labor agreement between the county and the King County Police Officers’ Guild, according to Wilson.

“We have some significant expenses coming to us from the King County Sheriff’s Office,” he said.

Sheriff’s deputies, represented by the guild, are guaranteed a 5 percent wage increase in 2011. They have received similar increases in each of the contract’s first two years.

King County Executive Dow Constantine asked the guild to talk about waiving its pay raise, but the guild has so far refused to discuss it.

North Bend has to handle the rising cost of city employees’ medical benefits, expected to go up 10 percent next year.

To offset the costs, Mayor Ken Hearing eliminated any cost-of-living increase for nonunion employees in his proposed budget, which he sent to the City Council earlier this month.

The city is in discussions with the union representing most of the city’s 34 employees about waiving a cost-of-living raise.

Snoqualmie has seen the cost of wages and benefits rise as well. Together, the costs are expected to go up about $345,000. The cost of the city’s pension plan is also rising about $100,000.

Other cost increases come from required updates to the city’s water and storm water comprehensive plans, estimated to cost about $210,000, and increased inter-department expenses, estimated at $350,000.

Falling or flat revenue

While costs are going up, neither city is seeing more money come in. Revenue is either at the same level as last year or, in some cases, falling.

Snoqualmie’s revenue from sales and B&O taxes has suffered, according to Orton.

About 1,200 businesses file B&O taxes with Snoqualmie each year. That number is down by about 100 businesses this year, Orton said.

He said he doesn’t know how many of those businesses are based in the city, just that they generate at least $5,000 of taxable income in Snoqualmie.

Sales in the retail sector in the area is down about 20 percent, and wholesale sales are down about 30 percent, he said. Construction has largely offset those declines.

North Bend’s revenues are expected to hold steady, but the city’s service area has grown, Wilson said.

The Tanner Annex added several square miles and hundreds of households to North Bend, but it hasn’t boosted the city’s coffers yet.

Cutting costs

Both North Bend and Snoqualmie are likely to solve their budget problems primarily by cutting expenses.

Snoqualmie will have to curb expenses, as its tax rates are already near maximum levels, Orton said.

The North Bend City Council has for several years showed that it would rather cut costs than raise taxes. The council has not raised the city’s property tax for the past three years.

“The direction from the council has been pretty clear, and that is if we’re short in balancing the budget, we’re going to cut expenses,” Wilson said. “The problem is that this is not a budget that has a lot of fat in it already, so the result is a reduction in service.”

The proposed budget cuts one full-time and two seasonal positions. It isn’t clear where the full-time position would be cut from. The seasonal positions are in the parks department.

“We have avoided significant cuts up until now, but now it has reached us as well,” Wilson said.

Dan Catchpole: 362-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com.

Where are you hurt?

Do you know your name?

Are you paying with debit or credit?

Beginning next year, Eastside Fire & Rescue will charge patients for ambulance rides in nonlife-threatening situations. The fire agency’s board of directors adopted the new fees in a 7-1 vote at its Oct. 14 meeting.

The board also considered charging fees for responding to car crashes, but voted 5-3 against it.

The estimated revenue from the new fees won’t make up the about $500,000 in savings EFR is looking for in its 2011 budget, according to EFR Chief Lee Soptich.

The fees were proposed as part of EFR’s attempt to come up with a budget for 2011 that meets rising costs and does not increase costs for its partners, which include North Bend and Fire District 38. Sammamish and other EFR partners have pushed the agency to not increase its costs.

To do that, the board either has to add fees or cut services, Soptich said.

The new fees, which the agency will start collecting in 2011, are estimated to raise $350,000 to $417,000, depending on the collection rate, he said.

Charging for car crash responses had been expected to raise an estimated $287,000.

Fairness was a key theme when the North Bend City Council discussed the city’s position on ambulance fees before the board of directors’ meeting.

Currently, patients in and around North Bend are much more likely than residents in Issaquah or Sammamish to go to a hospital in a private ambulance, which costs about $700, than get a free ride with EFR.

Who drives — EFR or a private company, usually American Medical Response — depends on the number of units in the area and the patient’s condition.

“Our current policy says we will transport when we have resources available,” Soptich told the City Council at its Oct. 5 meeting.

With only one aid car stationed in North Bend, the area is shorthanded to deal with another emergency during the time it takes to transport a patient to a hospital. Patients in the upper Snoqualmie Valley get free rides only about 20 percent of the time, according to Soptich.

One board member opposed the fees on philosophical grounds.

Fire Commissioner Ron Pedee, who represents Fire District 38, was the sole vote against the measure, which he has likened to double-billing residents already paying taxes for EFR.

“The agency has to use its resources for the best benefit for the most people,” he said.

Pedee supports EFR ceasing all transport in nonlife-threatening situations.

Instead, the agency should focus on its core missions — fire suppression and emergency medical services, he said. By state law, EFR cannot charge for those core services.

The agency does already charge for providing services outside its territory and for hazardous materials response.

The board agreed that the accident fee could be reconsidered to deal with budget holes in the future.

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com. Reporter Caleb Heeringa contributed to this article. Comment at www.snovalleystar.com.

Where are you hurt?

Do you know your name?

Are you paying with debit or credit?

Beginning next year, Eastside Fire & Rescue will charge patients for ambulance rides in non-life threatening situations. The fire agency’s board of directors adopted the new fees in a 7-1 vote at its Oct. 14 meeting.

The board also considered charging fees for responding to car crashes, but voted 5-3 against it.

The estimated revenue from the new fees won’t make up the about $500,000 in savings EFR is looking for in its 2011 budget, according to EFR Chief Lee Soptich.

The fees were proposed as part of EFR’s attempt to come up with a budget for 2011 that meets rising costs and does not increase costs for its partners, which include North Bend and Fire District 38. Sammamish and other EFR partners have pushed the agency to not increase its costs.

To do that, the board either has to add fees or cut services, Soptich said.

The new fees, which the agency will start collecting in 2011, are estimated to raise $350,000 to $417,000, depending on the collection rate, he said.

Charging for car crash responses had been expected to raise an estimated $287,000.

Fairness was a key theme when North Bend City Council discussed the city’s position on ambulance fees before the board of directors’ meeting.

Currently, patients in and around North Bend are much more likely than residents in Issaquah or Sammamish to go to a hospital in a private ambulance, which costs about $700, than get a free ride with EFR.

Who drives — EFR or a private company — depends on the number of units in the area and the patient’s condition.

“Our current policy says we will transport when we have resources available,” Soptich told City Council at its Oct. 5 meeting.

With only one aid car stationed in North Bend, the area is shorthanded to deal with another emergency during the time it takes to transport a patient to a hospital. Patients in the upper Snoqualmie Valley get free rides only about 20 percent of the time, according to Soptich.

One board member opposed the fees on philosophical grounds.

Fire Commissioner Ron Pedee, who represents Fire District 38, was the sole vote against the measure, which he has likened to double-billing residents already paying taxes for EFR.

“The agency has to use its resources for the best benefit for the most people,” he said.

Pedee supports EFR ceasing all transport in non-life threatening situations.

Instead, the agency should focus on its core missions — fire suppression and emergency medical services. By state law, EFR cannot charge for those core services.

The agency does already charge for providing services outside its territory and for hazardous materials response.

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com.

Yes, the economy has not turned around, but sometimes government cannot simply slice and dice its way to a balanced budget. All ideas are on the table for increasing revenue — including an Eastside Fire & Rescue fee for ambulance rides.

Hit by falling tax revenue, contract cities, including North Bend, are interested in keeping their expenses as low as possible. Necessity has produced some interesting ideas. Charging for ambulance rides is one worth examining.

This practice exists in other parts of the country, and indeed, in other parts of King County. No critically injured person has yet to be denied a ride to the hospital because they had a maxed-out credit card.

Most agencies, when pressed, admit they don’t invest much time and energy trying to extract payments from residents who can’t afford to pay. Most insurance providers cover the cost of the ambulance ride, and they do pay their claims. It doesn’t seem to matter whether the ride is provided by a private ambulance company or a public fire agency.

But it may not be that simple. It is possible that costs would end up being passed on to residents and businesses through higher insurance premiums. EFR should study that possible impact during its discussions.

There is also some concern about the idea of double charging. After all, residents already pay for the ambulance, the salary of the emergency medical technicians, the gas in the vehicle and everything else through their taxes. Should they have to pay a second time, whether it be through a direct payment or via higher insurance?

In a fair and perfect world, no.

But today’s reality is neither of those things, and is full of examples of government double-dipping. Taxpayers already pay tolls to drive on roads they paid to build, and fees to use park facilities that they already own. Taxpayers have put up with it, recognizing the fee model as a more equitable way of distributing costs.

Unfortunately, the charge for EFR to give medical transport to a hospital or to another waiting ambulance is probably necessary.

Call it the fire department equivalent of tolling.

Faced with the steadily rising costs of health care and personnel, and repeated calls from partners to limit their annual increases in contributions, Eastside Fire & Rescue is considering charging citizens for various fire services, from ambulance rides to car crash responses.

Sammamish officials have pushed the department to see what it would take to draft a budget with a zero-percent increase next year. EFR Deputy Chief of Operations Jeff Griffin said the administration is dedicated to trying for that, but said it may be a choice between staff or program cuts, or new revenue from fees.

The plans are still in the theoretical stages now, but will be presented as alternatives as the administration puts together its 2011 budget. Griffin told the board at its Aug. 12 meeting that many other local agencies, including Bellevue and Kirkland, were considering a fee-for-service model, which gives districts a more stable revenue source that doesn’t fluctuate like property tax receipts.

“The balance between what a society wants and what it is willing to pay for is delicate,” Griffin said.

Who gets a free ride?

He also highlighted the fairness issue. Currently, whether or not a patient gets a free ride to the hospital with EFR or pays approximately $700 for one with a private company is dependent on how many units are staffed near where they live and the severity of the injury. This naturally means that rural residents near Snoqualmie or North Bend are more likely to be charged for their ride than residents in more dense areas, like Issaquah or Sammamish.

Dee Williamson, the North Bend representative on the EFR board of directors, said it was unfair that people in North Bend and Snoqualmie had to pay for ambulance rides while people in Issaquah or Bellevue frequently did not.

If a fire department rig does not have to leave its area to reach a hospital, it can take patients there free of charge. If the rig would have to leave its area to reach a hospital, or if the rig were too busy, a private ambulance would be called.

“The issue becomes that people in Issaquah that are close to the hospital get a free ride,” Williamson said. “If it were equal, that would be wonderful, but we in North Bend never get the free ride, because the paramedics can’t leave North Bend.”

About 35 percent of patients in the area are transported by EFR, while private companies handle 65 percent. Griffin said that ratio would not change under the fee program; the agency would just recoup some of its costs and time spent carting people into hospitals in Bellevue or Seattle. Griffin said admitting a patient to Overlake Hospital Medical Center in Bellevue takes a unit out of commission for an hour and a half on average.

If the fee program were approved, the board would have to determine what to charge, whether it would bill patients itself or forgo approximately 15 percent of the revenues to pay an outside company to do billing. The board would also have to consider how hard to go after those who don’t pay — would it send them to collection agencies or forgive the debt?

Plan would generate needed revenue

All of those factors would affect how much EFR would make from the program annually, but Griffin estimated it could net the agency between $262,000 and $367,000. At the end of 2009, the district passed a budget that took approximately $300,000 from reserve funds and still had a $241,000 hole, which was made up by union employees forgoing wage increases and finding a cheaper health insurance plan.

At least one board member, Chairman Ron Pedee, said he is philosophically opposed to the idea. Pedee spoke at length against the proposal, calling it a “double billing” of taxpayers who have already funded the services with their tax dollars.

“Our job is to do the most good for the most people with the resources the public has provided for us,” he said. “It seems improper to charge them again for a service we feel is prudent given that they’ve already paid for it.

“Do we need the money? You bet,” he said. “But it’s disingenuous for public agencies to be grubbing around for fees they can tack on when the public has specifically said they don’t want that.”

To transport or not?

Pedee disagreed with the idea that charging patients for services would somehow make the system fairer. He suggested that if the aim was truly to make the system more equitable, the agency should consider getting out of the transport business completely, focusing local units on first response while letting the private companies handle transports.

“Fairness on a call-to-call basis is impossible,” he said. “It’s possible for me to experience response time ‘X’ and my neighbor to experience response time ‘XX.’”

King County medical directors are against districts charging for rides as well, Griffin said. The group feels that the fee would be double-dipping taxpayers who already pay money through their Medic One levy that is routed to individual districts for ambulance service — about $1.3 million dollars a year of a budget of more than $20 million.

The hospital administrators also fear that the elderly or those on fixed incomes might shy away from seeking medical attention, because they could not afford it and the fee would put pressure on emergency medical technicians to consider economic factors in their care.

Griffin downplayed suggestions that EMTs would have an economic incentive to transport people instead of giving them over to private services, saying that district policy still requires that departments prioritize keeping units in their regular areas over transports.

In its contract with private ambulance service American Medical Response, “it states that in the event of an emergency, we could have 25 additional ambulance trips into our area within an hour,” Griffin said. “We don’t want to lose that capacity. We have no interest in driving the private companies out of business.”

Caleb Heeringa: 392-6434, ext. 247, or cheeringa@isspress.com. Laura Geggel contributed to this report.

ALSO SEE: King County executive freezes salaries

King County leaders have taken a step to reduce labor costs — or 60 percent of the cash-strapped county’s budget.

The proposed reforms could require county employees to pay more for health and dental benefits, limit inflation-related raises, cut overtime and call for employee layoffs to be based on merit instead of seniority.

County Council members — acting as the Labor Policy Committee — adopted the set of labor reforms in a unanimous decision July 14. The changes could impact as many as 11,000 county employees.

The package could prompt a face-off between county leaders and public employee unions, as the county struggles to contain a $60 million budget deficit next year.

Councilwoman Kathy Lambert, the Snoqualmie Valley representative on the council, and council Chairman Bob Ferguson spearheaded the effort.

“Labor is the face of King County, and our employees perform many vital and important functions,” Lambert said in a statement. “Our dedicated staff includes doctors, nurses, attorneys, clerks, jail guards, judges, sheriff’s deputies and wastewater workers. These people are assets to the citizens of King County, and their compensation needs to be fair.”

Councilman Reagan Dunn, who represents part of Issaquah on the nine-member council, has also advocated for labor reform.

“King County labor policy reform is a difficult undertaking, but it is absolutely necessary,” he said in a statement. “Budget sustainability and efficiency will remain out of reach until labor costs are addressed and brought in line with fiscal reality. This is a meaningful step in the right direction.”

Lambert — first elected as a Republican — and Ferguson — first elected as a Democrat — put aside partisan politics to complete the proposal.

“Today’s bipartisan effort demonstrates the kind of leadership we must maintain to keep the county on track despite the significant fiscal challenges we face,” Ferguson said in a statement.

County voters approved a measure in 2008 to make the council, county executive and county assessor offices nonpartisan.

The council hailed the reforms as the first major review of labor policy since King County and Metro merged in 1994. Members approved the reforms a day after County Executive Dow Constantine announced he had frozen his salary and the salaries of about 150 other top officials.

Under the county charter, the executive acts as the county’s lead negotiator in labor talks. The council proposal provides guidelines for Constantine as he enters negotiations with 63 of the county’s 73 bargaining units next year.

The council and labor leaders discussed possible changes at a May summit.

“I am encouraged by the countywide teamwork we are seeing — elected officials, our valued employees and the public — as together we take on the most serious financial challenges that county government has ever faced,” Constantine said in a statement.

Warren Kagarise: 392-6434, ext. 234, or wkagarise@isspress.com.

After fixing mistakes found in its 2007-08 audit, the Snoqualmie Valley School District received a clean audit for the 2008-09 school year.

In the previous year, the state auditor’s office found four errors in the district’s financial practices.

The finances in question came from a $900,000 federal grant from the Department of Education, called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act grant.

Of that money, the 2007-08 auditor found that $107,894 had been given to a contractor delivering services to children two years old or younger, a category the federal special-education grant does not cover.

Nancy Meeks, Snoqualmie Valley School District director of student services, said the error came from incorrect coding.

“We get money from the state to serve birth-to-3 students and we had taken it that year,” Meeks said.

District administrators had incorrectly taken the money from the federal government instead of the state, but they quickly fixed the error once they discovered it, said Ron Ellis, the district’s business director.

In the second error, the auditor found the district had charged $64,443 in payroll and benefit costs for an employee but they hadn’t logged the employee’s time and work, as required.

Meeks said the error was likely the result of a communication problem.

“We missed one employee,” she said. “These aren’t really big issues. We do our best with our very lean business office, making sure we cross every ‘t’ and dot every ‘i,’ and sometimes we miss one.”

To address the problem, the district assigned an administrator to ensure paperwork is complete and accurate.

In the third error, the district did not keep required documentation on how it selected vendors for $103,451 it spent on special education services, such as occupational therapy.

Meeks, who began working for the district in 2007-08, said her predecessor, Kathy Lohman, handled the paperwork in question, which was filed the year before Meeks arrived.

Even if Lohman didn’t keep the necessary documentation, she — and the district — likely followed spending requirements and didn’t break any laws, Meeks said.

“What was hard was I could not say how my predecessor went through that process,” Meeks said. “Auditors change the requirements every single year. We’re always kind of guessing, ‘Gee, what is it that you want this year?’”

Since she came on board, Meeks said she has learned what sort of paperwork the auditors want.

“I have a pretty clear paper trail that is evidence so that the auditors will be happy,” Meeks said.

In the fourth, and final, error, the district awarded four contracts, totaling $165,398, without making sure the recipients were approved by the federal government. In the end, the vendors had been approved.

To avoid this problem in the future, district administrators inserted a suspension and disbarment clause in all of their contracts to ensure vendors meet federal grant requirements.

Laura Geggel: 392-6434, ext. 221, or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.

The Legislature missed a chance to help cities and counties across the state weather the lingering effects of the recession.

Current law mandates that localities use a portion of sales taxes on real estate transactions to help fund capital projects at parks. Localities should have the chance to use that money for maintenance, too — at least temporarily.

Under the current system, the money can be used for a capital expense, such as the purchase of land, major construction or renovation, but not for day-to-day operations. In many cases, the distinction calls for odd choices. For example, replacing all of the plumbing in a park restroom would likely be a capital cost but replacing a single leaky faucet would likely be maintenance.

Cities and counties could be faced with the scenario of having enough money to build a new soccer field but not enough to cut the grass after it’s finished.

In normal times, the law forces county and city officials to build better facilities to keep up with a growing population. But it assumes that money for maintenance will be available.

These, however, are not normal times. Housing construction has ground to a virtual halt, so the need for increased amenities has waned. Even people who have seen their paycheck dwindle can use parks as places to go for free. They need to be kept spic and span.

The Realtor’s lobby’s opposition to this proposal is especially confusing. It seems it would be easier to sell a house near a well-maintained park than it would be to sell one near a few overgrown lots.

In this economy, government needs to be allowed to use whatever creative solutions it can find to keep things functioning smoothly. The Legislature should allow flexibility in funding. If Olympia is especially concerned about how a locality uses its money, it can include a sunset provision or other trigger to return to the present funding model.

In the darkest days of the 2010 Legislative session, the Snoqualmie Valley School District was poised to lose about $1.8 million of state funding from its budget.

The sky has lightened for the district, for now. Though district administrators are still tabulating the impact, they predict the district will lose less state funding: about $1 million. It will mean more staffing cuts but fewer than expected.

Included in the state cuts are increased staffing for fourth grade, the remaining Learning Improvement Day and the elimination of Initiative 728 money, which provides money for more teachers.

The Legislature increased the levy base and raised the levy lid for districts across the state, including Snoqualmie Valley. Now, the district can tax residents up to 28.83 percent, instead of 24.83 percent of its base. The base is calculated by the amount of state, federal and other payments the district received the year before.

The combination of these two factors means that the district will have more maintenance and operations levy funds available for next year, according to Superintendent Joel Aune.

While Aune said the state budget was better than he feared, he reminded parents that last year the district had to cut more than $3 million and that the district had to continue operating with its “limited resources.”

Laura Geggel: 392-6434, ext. 221, or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.

Trails at Mount Si, Little Si, Middlefork and Rattlesnake have received a second lease on life from the state Legislature. The Legislature passed a supplemental budget for the 2010-11 year April 12 — a budget that had to deal with $2.8 billion in cuts.

Though $278,000, which translated into the closing of 22 trails and trailheads, had been on the chopping block, in the end the Legislature choose to maintain money for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, said Mark Mauren, a DNR assistant division manager for recreation and public access.

“They had some really tough decisions to make and fortunately were able to keep the outdoors open to the public,” Mauren said.

He said he was relieved to hear the trails would remain open. State funding pays for services such as pumping outhouses, maintaining facilities and trails, training and supporting volunteers, replacing vandalized and worn out signs and more.

“In this economy, people need to have access to physical exercise and the outdoors,” Mauren said.

Thousands of people visit Snoqualmie Valley’s trails annually, with 150,000 at Little Si, 350,000 at Mount Si, 30,000 at Middle Fork in Snoqualmie and 30,000 at Rattlesnake, according to DNR estimates.

Laura Geggel: 392-6434, ext. 221, or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.

It is time legislators show that they are men and women of substance, capable of leading the state through its fiscal crisis by finding creative solutions, not just new taxes or cuts.

Some legislators and Gov. Gregoire are content to threaten cutting vital services unless taxes are raised and some cuts made to close the gap. And yet state employees —the largest budget expenditure — are in line to receive five percent pay increases separate from cost of living adjustments. They are receiving raises while programs are being cut. How many private sector employees have endured another year of salary freezes and consider themselves lucky to have jobs? Why should state employees be any different?

The governor has the legal authority to force the state unions into collective bargaining, given the current budget shortfall. The governor must exercise this authority, which will go a long way toward closing the budget gap.

The state should use its rarely-used competitive contracting authority to lower the cost of providing public services.

User fees should supplant direct taxpayer support for applicable programs, boards and other entities.

Any tax increases must be considered in terms of reviving the state’s economy as soon as possible. The sooner Washington returns to prosperity, the sooner the state will be on solid fiscal footing. Raising the state’s business and occupation tax is not the answer; an increase is estimated to potentially cost nearly 15,000 jobs by 2013.

Further, the Legislature must keep in mind that even with the governor’s all-cuts proposed budget, the state will face another projected budget shortfall in 2011 of over $2 billion.

Short-term fixes won’t work now. The Legislature needs to craft a budget with skill and creativity. It has the tools to do so. Does it have the resolve to use them?

NEW — 12:53 p.m. Jan. 6, 2010

 North Bend’s Tanner Annex is already helping the city, which it joined this year. The additional tax revenue from the addition is offsetting a decrease in tax revenue, which had threatened to create a budget shortfall.

The economic recession depressed the city’s tax revenue, but the trend has flattened out, according to city officials.

“Had we not had some additional revenue from the Tanner Annex, we would be in more of a shortfall position,” city financial director Elena Montgomery said.

It isn’t clear if the two will balance each other out, she said. The city could still face a shortfall, but the difference—if any—has been lessened by the Tanner Annex.

Tax revenue from the area should also increase as the economy recovers, Montgomery noted.

The sales tax, collected largely from the Factory Stores outlet mall, is down about eight percent from the previous year, according to city officials. It is the single biggest source of money for the city’s general operating fund, which covers day-to-day expenses.

Money from the real estate excise tax—a tax on sales of real estate—is down as well. This money goes to support the city’s capital projects fund.

Montgomery said the city is taking a conservative approach in 2010, and is not involved in many construction projects. There is one exception — a new sewer line that runs out towards Interstate 90’s Exit 34.

The $14 million project has been a long time coming, and city won’t have any problem paying for it, according to city officials.

The total budget for 2010 is just under $31.5 million. Accounting for the sewer line project, the actual cost of running North Bend is around $17.5 million.

Dan Catchpole: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com.

At an April 2 Snoqualmie Valley School Board work session, Superintendent Joel Aune announced the district is preparing to cut $4.1 million from the 2009-10 school year budget. Out of a budget amounting to about $52.1 million, that amounts to an almost 8 percent slash in funds.

The cuts include eliminating about 18 full-time teachers, a middle-school assistant principal and various programs like the after-school activity bus and middle school interscholastic sports.

Members of the Snoqualmie Valley School Board, along with Superintendent Joel Aune, work on plans for drastic budget cuts.

The cuts are a response to both local and state deficits. Locally, the school district is spending about $1.5 million more than it is making. Statewide, the district is expecting to see a $2.6 million drop in funding. 

Much of the cuts come from the proposed drop in Initiative-728 funding. The initiative funds teachers and their professional development and help for at-risk children. The state Senate has proposed cutting the initiative by 93 percent from $458 per student to $32 per student, which would save the state $753 million.

The state House proposed reducing the initiative by 63 percent and partially restoring the cut with federal money. 

While the school board will not vote on a resolution concerning the final 2009-10 school budget until July 9, it is working on an expenditure reduction plan. The plan serves as a blueprint for where the district can make cuts when it approves its final budget. 

A history of cuts

This is the third year the school district has made cuts, but none have yet neared the current sizeable sum of $4.1 million. In 2007-08, district staff slimmed the budget by $225,500 with limited freezes on out-of-state travel and cuts to technology, business, teaching & learning, and maintenance services.

In 2008-09, the budget dropped $632,000. Many of the cuts came from eliminating jobs that the district had hoped to fill, including new maintenance, grounds worker, transportation mechanic and assistant transportation supervisor positions.

In making the cuts for the 2009-10 school year, administrators took into account a district-wide online survey and public comments, before reshaping the funding platform.

The majority of survey responses and comments urged the district to keep class size low, prompting administrators to do their best to subtract money from other programs, in lieu of cutting teachers. 

Elementary, middle

and high school cuts

More than half of the cuts affect K-12 services and extra-curricular activities. The budget proposes cutting 3.8 teaching positions at Mount Si High School and 0.5 teaching positions at Two Rivers School. 

At the middle-school level, 3.5 teachers and 2.5 specialists will lose their jobs. A specialist refers to a variety of positions, including librarians and physical therapists. A middle school assistant principal at Snoqualmie or Chief Kanim Middle School will also be cut.

The budget proposal suggests that 7.5 elementary school teachers be laid off. Instructional assistants will also be reduced. 

Teachers will be laid off based on language from their union contract. Teachers who have taught in Washington state for the least amount of time will be laid off first. If one school is hit harder because of seniority issues, district staff will redistribute teachers from other schools. 

If more state or federal funding becomes available, the district will hire teachers back.

Extracurricular

activities

The school district will save $400,000 by reducing extracurricular activities and eliminating the activity bus. Of that money, $300,000 affects middle school students. Currently, students compete in interscholastic sports programs. In the proposal, the program would become an intramural one, having students compete against their classmates, instead of at other schools. 

The district would save money on transportation and equipment, as well as salaries for referees and coaches. Currently, teachers receive stipends for coaching, but they would receive less under the intramural program.

Parent Liz Piekarczyk voiced concerns about having enough athletes for games.

“Chief Kanim Middle School is so small,” Piekarczyk said. “I don’t see how we would have an intramural program.”

The district would also start charging organizations more for using school space for programs. This includes the Si View Metropolitan Park District, which runs the HUB sports program.

Cuts to central services 

Less than half of the $4.1 million in cuts will affect the district’s central services. In the proposed budget, the district will no longer fund out-of-state travel and district-funded field trips, including the fifth-grade trip to places like Camp Seabeck. The district is also reducing available overtime and cutting costs for photocopying and printing. 

The district hopes to save $24,000 by ending its lease with the city of Snoqualmie for the Teaching and Learning Annex, a building that used to house Snoqualmie’s library before it moved to Snoqualmie Ridge. In addition, most newsletters and staff directors will be put online, instead of printed.

The transportation department will save $50,000 by changing the start times for Opstad and North Bend elementary schools, allowing buses to more efficiently transport students. Transportation will also change bus stops and enforce the rule requiring most students living within one mile of the school to walk. 

Examining heating and lighting bills led the district to propose it complete an energy audit, lower thermostats and manager computer shutoffs to save $90,000. 

Laying off eight custodians across the district will save about $457,000.

In a controversial move, the budget proposal includes moving all four teachers on special assignment back into the classroom. The TOSAs are experienced educators who help district teachers learn new skills and teaching credits.

District Teaching and Learning Director Don McConkey said the public comments the district received asked that the TOSAs go back into the classroom. But, if the TOSAs begin to teach students, their salaries will be funded by the general fund, instead of from other sources, and will force the district to lay off less experienced teachers.

“Many people may not have an understanding of the impact those TOSAs have on our classroom teachers,” McConkey said.

Special education will also be impacted, and will lose $168,000 in funding by eliminating 20 hours per day of instructional assistant time and reducing the budget for supplies. Some federal dollars will help cushion the blow, but the district is unsure when or how much of the money it will receive.

To view a more detailed list of the proposed cuts, visit www.svsd410.org and select Expenditure Reduction Plan.

Future funding

Federal money for schools may help lessen the blow, but Snoqualmie Valley Schools Business Director Ron Ellis said the district is not factoring it in the 2009-10 budget just yet. Although Washington state is slated to receive $820 million federal dollars, that money must be split between the state’s 295 public school districts and higher education entities over a two-year period. It is unclear when and how much money Snoqualmie Valley Schools would receive. 

Plus, federal money usually has strict guidelines for how it can be spent.

“It’s going to be tough locally to be able to make that strings-attached money from the government cover the impact for the district,” Ellis said.

If the recession continues to negatively affect school funding, district administrators said they might have to implement more cuts, including further program reductions, charging staff for plugging in electronics like space heaters and refrigerators or even closing a school.

During the meeting’s public comment period, Snoqualmie Valley Schools Foundation President Carolyn Simpson asked district staff to continue to look for programs to cut so it could salvage others. For instance, district administrators plan to direct more Initiative-728 money toward teacher salaries, instead of toward at-risk children and professional development for teachers.

“I think the last thing the schools should be cutting is funding for at-risk kids,” Simpson said.

She added the foundation would work with the district to apply for grants financing programs suffering from budget cuts. 

“The bottom line is we need to raise more funds,” Simpson said.

Because the budget cuts affect programs across the school district, the school board has scheduled a citizen comment period at the school district office at 8001 Silva Ave. S.E. from 6-7:15 p.m. April 16.

People unable to come to the meeting can comment online at www.svsd410.org until April 16.

The school board expects to vote on whether or not to accept the budget resolution at a special meeting at the district office at 6:30 p.m. April 20.

Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.

Times are financially tight for the state of Washington, especially for K-12 education and the Department of Early Learning.

With a $5.8 billion deficit, a newly proposed budget by Governor Chris Gregoire has a string of cuts amounting to about $3 billion in the 2009-11 state budget. If passed by the Legislature, these cuts would impact both the Snoqualmie Valley School District and Encompass of North Bend.

School district administrators are still assessing exactly how the proposed budget would affect Snoqualmie Valley, but much of their attention is focused on the fate of two funds — one that reduces class size and one that funds teacher wage increases. 

Superintendent Joel Aune said Initiative 728, a fund that reduces class sizes, increases learning opportunities for students and provides professional development for staff, supplies salaries for 30 teachers. 

Statewide, the governor has proposed cutting $178 million from Initiative 728, which would translate into about $600,000 less for Snoqualmie Valley. 

“We utilize the bulk of those 728 funds to fund teachers, which translates into class size reduction,” Aune said.

The suggested budget also calls for the suspension of Initiative 732, which funds cost of living adjustments for teachers. Statewide, this would save $350 million. 

With all of these cuts, Aune said he was still grateful for other areas that retained funding. The two learning improvement days — days in which teachers can focus on school improvement plans — were in danger of losing financial support. But in the end, the governor chose to leave them untouched.

“To leave those two days intact was certainly positive,” Aune said. 

The state Legislature will tackle the budget in the upcoming session. The Snoqualmie Valley PTSA plans to visit Olympia in February to call for increased school funding. People can also contact their representatives to comment on the budget.

“We’re responsible and committed to doing the very best that we can to support our students,” Aune said. “My biggest concern is we don’t undo so much of the good work that was done in the last 10 years.”

Encompass is also facing cuts. The governor’s proposed budget would force Encompass to rely more on private fundraising to finance its programs.

“It changes how we have to operate,” said Terry Granillo, Encompass director of finance.

In the proposed budget, Early Childhood Education Assistance Program (ECEAP) funding is flat, which is the same thing as a cut, Granillo said. 

ECEAP provides education and assistance to 36 low-income children living with developmental disabilities. The families of these children also receive assistance from Encompass.

“It’s a critical program,” said Paula Nelson, ECEAP family support specialist. “It gives (the children) the head start or boost they need to enter into kindergarten.”

The only other Snoqualmie Valley ECEAP provider, Riverview School District, offers 18 spots in Carnation.

Without additional state funding, Encompass will have to pay for increases in general costs, including supplies, utilities and wage adjustments. 

Family Support activities, such as Parent Education, Alcohol & Other Drug programs and Kinship will be flatly funded or suspended.

The Child Care Resource and Referral would be cut entirely from the state budget, but would continue to receive federal funds for the Washington Scholars Program.

Child Care Resource and Referral offers technical assistance to Encompass’ Play and Learn Group and also helps it stay on track for its national accreditation for preschool renewal. 

Without Child Care Resource and Referral, Encompass would have to use its own resources to preserve its services and accreditation. 

The budget also fails to address Early Intervention programs. King County Developmental Disabilities Division is required to provide services to families with children experiencing developmental disabilities. But the program is under funded — Encompass was not even paid for its services in these areas for the month of November, Granillo said.

“We are the only EI (Early Intervention) provider in the Valley, so by impacting Encompass, these funding shortfalls directly impact children and their families in our community,” Granillo said.

A better way to fund Early Intervention would be to provide money on a per-child basis instead of giving an insufficient flat sum to agencies like Encompass, Granillo said. 

Overall, funding for the Department of Early Learning will increase 4 percent. Some of those increases will go toward the homeless care subsidy, which would help Encompass staff refer homeless families to agencies receiving these funds.

Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.