The Thurston County Board of Commissioners continued its work last week toward reducing the impact of a general fund shortfall on county services. Their actions — along with cost-saving measures implemented by offices and departments — have already narrowed the general fund gap from an anticipated $36 million to an estimated $11.5 million.
Last month, the county conducted a budget exercise with elected officials and appointed directors to review general-fund reduction scenarios and their potential impacts on county services. The county called this a complex task because the general fund is not the only source of funding for many offices and departments, including the sheriff’s office, which draws a portion of its revenue from the Public Safety Sales Tax.
The exercise, along with community input, informed the board’s work of setting the general fund reduction target for each department and office at Tuesday’s meeting. The county said in a Wednesday news release that the commissioners’ vote during the meeting puts it on track for a balanced budget in 2026.
These reductions reflect the extraordinary budget pressures local governments, including Thurston County, are facing this year due to widespread state and federal funding cuts, rising costs and flattening revenues. About half of the county’s offices and departments will need to contend with reductions ranging from around 10% to 19%.
The sheriff’s office — which has not been asked to reduce its share of the general fund during previous budget cycles — will see one of the lowest reductions at about 4%, according to the county. This comes a week after roughly 100 county residents came to the board’s Sept. 30 meeting to express their support for Sheriff Derek Sanders and his office.
“We spent the last several months researching solutions to keep us from having to make these difficult but necessary reductions, and no choice was made lightly,” Board Chair Tye Menser said in the release. “As the organization begins to outline what this reduced budget will mean, the board is committed to advocating for Thurston County at the state and federal level along with our neighboring districts.
“Although these decisions are key to addressing our budget shortfall, the board recognizes the impacts these reductions will have on our services, programs, residents and dedicated employees across the county,” he continued. “We could not be prouder of the work that our county employees do each and every day for the residents of Thurston County.”
