O PINION Port Orchard As it should be, the Kitsap County budget is a major topic in the cam- paigns of candidates for county com- missioner. Since 2007, the commissioners have been working to balance the budget without depleting the general fund reserves as revenue has declined from its peak. There is no end in sight yet. Revenues have yet to begin growing after the real estate bubble burst and a recession followed. The process so far has been like a person on a treadmill — briskly walk- ing just to stay in one place. Each stride was a reduction in pro- jected spending, a diversion of funds from one use to another, or a cut in employee hours or positions. One other way to avoid falling back- wards off the treadmill is to increase taxes and have the extra revenue act as one or more strides, but the com- missioners have not yet asked for a tax increase. Even after revenues begin to rise with the economy — whenever this finally occurs — the treadmill will still be moving. Think of the treadmill’s speed as the rate of spending increase needed to keep up absent a reduction. Having been on this treadmill for over three years, incumbent Josh Brown appears to understand the nature of the problem. His challengers also seem to grasp at least some aspects of it. When Brown says that the county’s costs as an employer were rising too fast to be sustained with available rev- enues even before the recession hit, he appears to be right. Decisions made years ago made the rate of increase in total employee com- pensation too great to be met by county rev- enues. In 1998 the county commissioners substantially increased the medical insurance ben- efits that are part of total employee compensation. Once this greater medical insurance benefit was given, it became an expect- ed part of compensation even when the county’s cost to provide it rose faster than revenues. The share of medical insurance pre- miums paid by county government has been and still is greater than that paid by the federal and state governments for their civilian employees. This has to change, if the county is to bring its costs as employer into line with its revenues. Collective bargaining agreements between the county and employee unions have customarily required a “cost of living adjustment” that can be greater than the rate of inflation. When inflation disappeared because of the recession, one might expect that the county’s contractu- al obligation would not include a COLA, but it did. Obligated to pay more even in the absence of inflation and despite declin- ing revenue, the county had to nego- tiate modifications to the collective bargaining agreements to balance the budget. Pay raises that come at regular inter- vals in an employee’s career can be a good idea, since they tend to retain experienced employees. If higher productivity comes with experience, more can be done without hiring more people. But if these “step” increases play a part in causing the county’s total costs as employer to rise faster than rev- enues, then something has to give. With an operation the size of county government, the rate of increase in the average cost per employee ought to be near the rate of inflation over the long term — but it hasn’t been and won’t be unless changes are made. We could all benefit from informed and thoughtful discussion of compen- sation issues, since this is the biggest part of the county’s general fund bud- get. It won’t be easy for the candidates to resist the temptation to descend into demagoguery, and there will likely be some flak coming from the employees themselves. For county employees, their com- pensation is an unavoidably personal issue so a dispassionate attitude would be really hard to maintain. For the commissioner candidates, it’s an important aspect of county busi- ness, and we need to know which one can best handle it reasonably and dispassionately. Bob Meadows is a Port Orchard resident. IN OUR OPINION C assie Holden would be 34 years old today — perhaps the mother of a young daughter herself — if she hadn’t been raped and beaten to death with a rock at the ten- der age of 12 in 1988. She was visiting from Pocatello, Idaho, when she went for a walk before dinner in Bremerton and never returned. Her killer, Jonathan Lee Gentry, was younger then, at 32, than Cassie would be today if she had lived. Because of his long criminal history, the jury that heard the case voted for the death penalty. And yet, 22 years later, he’s still alive and well on the taxpayers’ dime. But hopefully that’s going to change soon. The Washington State Supreme Court last week rejected a challenge to the lethal-injection procedure, clearing the way — hopefully — for justice to at last be done. Gentry and another death row inmate had joined an appeal lodged on behalf of condemned killer Cal Coburn Brown claiming the state’s preferred method of execution was uncon- stitutional, clearing the way for all of their executions. Brown’s date with justice is currently scheduled for Sept. 10, and if he’s finally dispatched, he would be only the fifth con- demned killer to die in Washington since the death penalty was reinstated in 1993. Gentry, meanwhile, is currently the longest-tenured prisoner on death row in Washington state — a dubious record not so much for him as for the justice system he and his taxpayer- supported legal team. Capital punishment foes argue disingenuously that execut- ing killers doesn’t deter murders, but how on earth would we know for sure if we have to wait 22 years — at least — for the sentence to be carried out? The old saying that “Justice delayed is justice denied” has been in force in Washington state for too long. But hopefully for Brown, Gentry and others who’ve gamed the system to pro- long their miserable lives, the end is near. Is justice finally at hand for infamous Kitsap killer? Classified Ads (360) 394-8700 Fax (360) 876-4458 What’s Up (360) 779-4464 All Other Departments (360) 876-4414 online edition at: www.portorchardindependent.com ADMINISTRATION PUBLISHER: Rich Peterson [email protected]ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATOR: Janis French ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT: Karen Minard CIRCULATION MANAGER: Noreen Hamren [email protected]ADVERTISING MARKETING REPRESENTATIVES: Mike Schiro [email protected]Tracy Keller [email protected]PRODUCTION STAFF ARTIST: Nicole Stump REAL ESTATE NOW: Denise Mandeville EDITORIAL EDITOR: Jeff Rhodes [email protected]NEWS STAFF: Carole Bacon [email protected]Chris Chancellor [email protected]WHAT’S UP: Jennifer Morris [email protected]WNPA member We’re Independently audited! CONTACT US AT: P.O. Box 27, Port Orchard, WA 98366 BOB MEADOWS Independent Columnist County has been too generous an employer P ORT ORCHARD I NDEPENDENT Page A6 www.portorchardindependent.com Friday, August 6, 2010 • Port Orchard Independent quote of the week “...we haven’t seen or heard any animals over there in the last two years. Those animals haven’t seen daylight in I don’t know how long...” — Port Orchard resident Steve Prinz, in whose neighbors’ shed were discovered a dead horse, two live ones and several dogs Write to us: Send letters to 2950 Mile Hill Dr., Port Orchard, WA 98366, or fax to (360) 876-4458, or e-mail to [email protected]. Opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Independent or its staff
Transcript
OPINIONPort Orchard
As it should be, the Kitsap County budget is a major topic in the cam-paigns of candidates for county com-missioner.
Since 2007, the commissioners have been working to balance the budget without depleting the general fund reserves as revenue has declined from its peak.
There is no end in sight yet. Revenues have yet to begin growing
after the real estate bubble burst and a recession followed.
The process so far has been like a person on a treadmill — briskly walk-ing just to stay in one place.
Each stride was a reduction in pro-jected spending, a diversion of funds from one use to another, or a cut in employee hours or positions.
One other way to avoid falling back-wards off the treadmill is to increase taxes and have the extra revenue act as one or more strides, but the com-missioners have not yet asked for a tax increase.
Even after revenues begin to rise with the economy — whenever this finally occurs — the treadmill will still be moving.
Think of the treadmill’s speed as the rate of spending increase needed to keep up absent a reduction.
Having been on this treadmill for over three years, incumbent Josh Brown appears to understand the nature of the problem.
His challengers also seem to grasp at least some aspects of it.
When Brown says that the county’s costs as an employer were rising too fast to be sustained with available rev-enues even before the recession hit, he appears to be right.
D e c i s i o n s made years ago made the rate of increase in total employee com-pensation too great to be met by county rev-enues.
In 1998 the county commissioners substantially increased the medical insurance ben-efits that are part of total employee compensation.
Once this greater medical insurance benefit was given, it became an expect-ed part of compensation even when the county’s cost to provide it rose faster than revenues.
The share of medical insurance pre-miums paid by county government has been and still is greater than that paid by the federal and state governments for their civilian employees.
This has to change, if the county is to bring its costs as employer into line with its revenues.
Collective bargaining agreements between the county and employee unions have customarily required a “cost of living adjustment” that can be greater than the rate of inflation.
When inflation disappeared because of the recession, one might expect that the county’s contractu-al obligation would not include a COLA, but it did.
Obligated to pay more even in the
absence of inflation and despite declin-ing revenue, the county had to nego-tiate modifications to the collective bargaining agreements to balance the budget.
Pay raises that come at regular inter-vals in an employee’s career can be a good idea, since they tend to retain experienced employees.
If higher productivity comes with experience, more can be done without hiring more people.
But if these “step” increases play a part in causing the county’s total costs as employer to rise faster than rev-enues, then something has to give.
With an operation the size of county government, the rate of increase in the average cost per employee ought to be near the rate of inflation over the long term — but it hasn’t been and won’t be unless changes are made.
We could all benefit from informed and thoughtful discussion of compen-sation issues, since this is the biggest part of the county’s general fund bud-get.
It won’t be easy for the candidates to resist the temptation to descend into demagoguery, and there will likely be some flak coming from the employees themselves.
For county employees, their com-pensation is an unavoidably personal issue so a dispassionate attitude would be really hard to maintain.
For the commissioner candidates, it’s an important aspect of county busi-ness, and we need to know which one can best handle it reasonably and dispassionately.
Bob Meadows is a Port Orchard resident.
IN OUR OPINION
Cassie Holden would be 34 years old today — perhaps the mother of a young daughter herself — if she hadn’t been raped and beaten to death with a rock at the ten-
der age of 12 in 1988.She was visiting from Pocatello, Idaho, when she went for a
walk before dinner in Bremerton and never returned.Her killer, Jonathan Lee Gentry, was younger then, at 32,
than Cassie would be today if she had lived.Because of his long criminal history, the jury that heard the
case voted for the death penalty. And yet, 22 years later, he’s still alive and well on the taxpayers’ dime.
But hopefully that’s going to change soon.The Washington State Supreme Court last week rejected a
challenge to the lethal-injection procedure, clearing the way — hopefully — for justice to at last be done.
Gentry and another death row inmate had joined an appeal lodged on behalf of condemned killer Cal Coburn Brown claiming the state’s preferred method of execution was uncon-stitutional, clearing the way for all of their executions.
Brown’s date with justice is currently scheduled for Sept. 10, and if he’s finally dispatched, he would be only the fifth con-demned killer to die in Washington since the death penalty was reinstated in 1993.
Gentry, meanwhile, is currently the longest-tenured prisoner on death row in Washington state — a dubious record not so much for him as for the justice system he and his taxpayer-supported legal team.
Capital punishment foes argue disingenuously that execut-ing killers doesn’t deter murders, but how on earth would we know for sure if we have to wait 22 years — at least — for the sentence to be carried out?
The old saying that “Justice delayed is justice denied” has been in force in Washington state for too long. But hopefully for Brown, Gentry and others who’ve gamed the system to pro-long their miserable lives, the end is near.
Is justice finally at hand for infamous Kitsap killer?
Classified Ads (360) 394-8700Fax (360) 876-4458What’s Up (360) 779-4464All Other Departments (360) 876-4414
CONTACT US AT: P.O. Box 27, Port Orchard, WA 98366
BOB MEADOWSIndependent Columnist
County has been too generous an employer
PORT ORCHARDPORT ORT OR RCRCR HAHAH RDARDAINDEPENDENT
Page A6 www.portorchardindependent.com Friday, August 6, 2010 • Port Orchard Independent
quoteof theweek
“...we haven’t seen or heard any animals over there in the last two years. Those animals haven’t seen daylight in I don’t know how long...”
— Port Orchard resident Steve Prinz, in whose neighbors’ shed were discovered a dead horse, two live ones and several dogs
Write to us: Send letters to 2950 Mile Hill Dr., Port Orchard, WA 98366, or fax to (360) 876-4458, or e-mail to [email protected].
Opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Independent or its staff
Friday, August 6, 2010 • Port Orchard Independent www.portorchardindependent.com Page A7
By TOM McCABEFor the Independent
So this is what it looks like when the extreme environmentalists get their way.
For two decades, enviros in our state have been striving to shut down home-building.
No-growthers have argued, litigated, leg-islated, and lobbied for every law, regula-tion, tax and impact fee designed to stop homebuilders from building homes.
Enviro groups with righteous-sounding names like Futurewise and Earth First! fight against virtually every single devel-opment and every single homebuilder.
State and local government agencies such as the Department of Ecology and the Puget Sound Partnership join the fray as well.
All these self-anointed priests of nature
want to stop growth. Well, they succeed-ed.
Growth has stopped. Housing starts in our state have been reduced 67 percent (from 52,000 to 17,000) since 2005.
The enviros won.And here’s what happens when enviros
win and growth stops.• Unemployment rises. More than
62,000 construction workers in our state are out of work. The enviros and our Governor are fond of stating that these 62,000 workers can be retrained to be computer technicians or state workers. But what happens when everyone works for the state? Look at Greece or Spain for an example.
• Budget deficits skyrocket. State gov-ernment lost its cash cow, the construction industry. As a result, the state budget defi-cit is $3 billion and climbing.
Our governor and some leading
Democrats believe the state can tax itself out of the budget crisis.
But you cannot tax an industry when it no longer exists.
• Non-construction companies suf-fer. When homebuilding stops, almost everyone suffers.
Newspapers lose advertising revenue from the building industry, so reporters get laid off. Nurseries don’t sell plants and shrubs to new homebuyers, because there aren’t any, and therefore nursery workers are laid off.
• Charitable giving declines. Builders are very generous. They sponsor baseball teams, soccer teams, and basketball teams.
They contribute to the arts, the commu-nity, the Rotary and the Red Cross.
So when growth stops and builders close their doors, charitable giving declines.
The enviros got their way. How do you like it?
Tom McCabe is executive vice president of the Building Industry
Association of Washington.
Report underscores education failings
GUEST OPiniOn
Tom McCabe
That’s too much. It’s bad enough that the poor horse
died, but was it really neces-sary to have that photo on top of this story? With the lime on it, no less? C’mon, that’s awful. The edi-
tor should be ashamed.— from kathyhammel
on July 30I am glad the pic-
ture is there for all to see. That horse and the other animals suffered beyond what I can only imagine, and the least we can do is see this picture to remember and not let the death be in vain.
— from debinwa on Aug. 1
Sorry. I have to vote no on any levies. Obama’s double dip recession is thoroughly pushing me out of anything resembling the middle class..
— from usedbookman on July 31
Good job, Lary. It’s comforting to know that our illustrious mayor is representing our city’s best interest by calling Fred Chang’s actions to task. And, it is disheartening to know that Fred actu-ally called the Sun and told them to alter their bid. I am happy that the contract was awarded to our own Port Orchard Independent.
— from CaptSherry on July 28
RE: “ Dead horse leads to arrest of 60-year-old South Kitsap woman” — July 30
onlinereaders respond
Taken from comments posted by readers to stories at
www.portorchardindependent.com
RE: “Library levy gets tepid backing” — July 30
RE: “Coppola, Chang spar over newspaper bid process” — July 23
In the headline for last week’s story about the Kitsap Regional Library’s decision to run a ballot
measure in the November elec-tion, I used the word “tepid”
to describe the enthusi-asm with which Mayor Lary Coppola will rec-ommend the city coun-cil endorse the request.I suggested to Coppola,
whose criticism of KRL’s proposals up to that
point had included such descriptive phrases as “a slap in the face,” that the sys-tem’s final offer was a (lousy) deal for Port Orchard.
“Yeah,” he answered, “but it’s a best (lousy) deal they’ve ever given us.”If that isn’t damning with faint praise, I don’t know what is.The levy calls for Silverdale to receive roughly $8 million with another $3.85 million going to Kingston to construct new libraries in both com-munities. In addition, the district would allocate $4.5 mil-lion to maintain and staff both facilities.
Meanwhile, KRL’s own website explained that Port Orchard was scheduled to receive “up to” $3 million — provided the city could come up with a matching amount — to build a new Bay Street library. Also, Port Orchard wouldn’t get its share until 2014 or 2015, while the others would start getting theirs
immediately.Coppola said KRL officials assured him Port Orchard would receive the full $3 million, not “up to” $3 million, and that no city match would be necessary.He also said it didn’t matter if the funding was delayed until 2014, since a new library would be tied to a new downtown parking garage, which isn’t supposed to be built until 2013.Again, Coppola isn’t excited about the deal, but he’s more or less backing it.I guess the price of being a politician is accepting less than you’d hoped for sometimes.Personally, I still think Port Orchard is getting a (lousy) deal and you won’t hear me back it.
— from “Rhodes Less Traveled,” by Jeff Rhodes
bestof the blogs
Taken from the staff blogs at
www.portorchard independent.com
(Lousy) library deal is worth being tepid about
Jeff Rhodes
By DIAnA CIESlAk For the Independent
In July, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the finalists for the second round of the Race to the Top grant competition.
Washington didn’t make the cut.Gov. Gregoire, Randy Dorn and
State Board of Education Chairman Jeff Vincent issued this statement in response to Washington state’s elimination: “Today’s news does not mean the end of meaning-ful education reform in Washington. When we put together our application, we were committed, win or lose, to making sure we would carry out education reform our way, the Washington way.”
The Tacoma News Tribune reports Mary Lindquist, president of the Washington Education Association, saying: “While we are extremely disappointed that the fed-eral government did not recognize the collaborative effort between the governor,
the Legislature, parents, other education advocacy groups, local school districts and WEA, the steps we have already taken in preparation for Race to the Top money set a framework for investing in a stronger public schools system.”
According to the folks quoted above, the money isn’t that important because we made significant strides toward improving education in our state.
But did we? No.What we got was watered-down policy
and proof that collaboration between the state and the WEA results in policies that better serve the interests of adults more than kids.
Washington’s failure to qualify as a Race to the Top finalist shouldn’t surprise any-one.
Why not? Because the legislation that was supposed to qualify us was full of good intentions and weak policy.
For example, Washington committed to reforming teacher and principal evaluation
procedures, but fell short of including the single most important indicator of effec-tiveness: whether or not students learn.
When it came to “turning around our lowest-achieving schools,” Washington’s reform efforts were unimpressive. Legislators created a new three-year improvement process, but any glimmer of reform fell flat when you reached the end of the legislation and found that there are no consequences for schools that fail to improve after the three years.
The bill merely creates a working group that will decide what to do next.
While they’re meeting, more students will be deprived of a good education. Oh, and they forbid the creation of char-ter schools in school turnaround models. (Other states increased the number of charter schools.)
Last month’s announcement just shines one more light on the fact that our policy-makers and education system are keeping our kids on a treadmill when they should be going somewhere.
Diana Cieslak is a policy analyst for the Evergreen Freedom Foundation’s Citizenship & Governance Center and
