Sheriff: Survey says public supports tax levy to fund jail
EUGENE, Ore. - A poll found support for a tax levy to fund the Lane County Jail, Sheriff Tom Turner told KVAL News.
The full results of the survey will be shared with the Lane County Board of Commissioners during meetings Tuesday night at 5:30 p.m. and on Wednesday morning at 9 a.m. in Harris Hall at the Lane County Courthouse.
Turner told KVAL News the majority of those polled supported a 50 cent per $1,000 of assessed value tax if the money is dedicated to the county jail.
Turner said such a levy would raise about $12.7 million per year, enough to double the number of jail beds available for local offenders from the current 135 to as many as 270 beds.
The sheriff told KVAL's Tom Adams on Monday, "That would allow us to be able to incarcerate Measure 11 offenders, and that alone would help me sleep at night because we'd be able to provide that capacity." The sheriff believes keeping a levy narrowly focused on the jail could be a building block to restore the county's public safety system and adds, "We hear the message. It's to assist with this (the jail). It's nothing else; it's a specific need."
The Lane County Jail has suffered cuts as the sheriff's department has coped with increasing costs and declining revenues. The county historically received a percentage of timber sales on public lands managed by the federal government. As those declined, the federal government made direct payments to timber counties to make up for the lost revenue. Congress has been phasing out those payments in recent years.The county has cut jail beds, resulting in the release of inmates who might otherwise be held until they face trial or post bail.
The county plans the two public hearings Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning to solicit input from the public. The Board will discuss the tax proposal after the hearing on Wednesday and may take action, Chairman Sid Leiken said.
The county asks speakers at the hearings to limit their public testimony to 3 minutes or less per person. Community members who wish to convey more information can submit their testimony to the Board in writing and then briefly summarize their views before commissioners, the county said.
Those who are unable to attend either public hearing can send their written comments to the Lane County Board of Commissioners, 125 E. Eighth Ave., Eugene, 97401 or via email to publiccomment@co.lane.or.us.
Have you noticed there has been no talk about what the root problems are with funding for the jail and deputies.Â
They won't talk about it, because they can't defend it, and know it would harm their effort to get even more money to continue to fund unsustainable contracts. How long does anyone think another levy would last until they ask for more, 6 months, a year? Sure the job can be dangerous, but not any more so that dozens of jobs in the private sector. Why should people in the private sector job market have to pay for things for government that they can only dream of having. REFORM or go broke.  If any deputy thinks his or her job is too dangerous, go out and log for awhile, go crabbing in Alaska, drill wells off shore, do you want me to keep going?
Your Correct Allen, every time taxes are raised, it never go's where it is supposed to go it always winds up on some other project that has nothing to do with the original purposed increase. Thats why people don't trust government to spend there money.
don't vote for it people, if you do money will continue to be diverted from the general fund to other pet projects of the commissioners. This is the history of ALL BLOATED government, force the people to vote in levy's to fund essential services while the elected clowns continue to fund programs to get reelected.
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If voter levy's are now in vogue, there might as well be levy's for everything in county government. Fire all of the commissioners because they will be unnecessary. All you need is a county manager to prepare the voter budget package.
Maybe we should do away with a jail altogether and just put the criminals on house arrest. Â Think of the millions we could save not housing or guarding anybody. Â I'm sure we would all sleep better knowing the criminal next door is securely locked in his own home with an ankle bracelet on, as we enjoy the fruits of our fiscal frugality.
Why doesn't the County figure out a way to provide jail services cheaper. Â Do we need prison style cells for drunks and jaywalkers.
@Kelmster "Do we need prison style cells for drunks and jaywalkers." Well since thhe USSA is a police state and no longer "land of the free" ... then the answer to your question is yes.
@Paul Kersey. this is a police state and it sucks
 @Paul Kersey.  @Kelmster Elsewhere they confine low risk offenders in tents and old warehouses.  Why is increasing the budget always the solution? Why can't County officials think outside the box?
We should start talking about cutting government wages to fund jails and such instead of us hard working lower class people who only make about 30,000 a year or less. There are a lot of us that can do the same job as those high paid state and federal employes for a lot less. I don't feel government and state officals should make as much as they do. Most don't know what it is like to live paycheck to paycheck with nothing to fall back on if you or your kids get sick and you have to miss work most of us don't get personal or sick days..I think WE THE PEOPLE need to take a better look at how our government is spending our hard earned money to make there lives easier......
 @Cris Kee I think that should be the campaign slogan for opponents, "I'll do more for less." Offer to take a pay cut if elected. DeFazio has used a similar tactic for the better part of 2 decades with his "refusing to take a pay increase". I remember when he used to have t.v. commercials showing him drive around town in an old beater car as a promo stunt.
The language of the proposed levy specifically states the Commissioners cannot undercut the money currently going to the Jail when/if the levy is approved in the May election. Sheriff Turner is far from a "puppet" for the Commissioners, as some ill-informed people have posted. If you actually understood ow County Government operates, out know the Sheriff is an elected official, and is not answerable to the commissioners. However, the commissioners are the county budget authority, and they a lot him his annual budget to operate the Sheriff's Office. If you followed local government, you'd know that Sheriff Turner's relationship with the commissioners has been confrontational at times, as they continue to under fund public safety. Defazio has nothing to do with county government, he is a Federal Congressman. He no more has anything to do with county government, than the Eugene city council has anything to do with US foreign policy. Every other county in this state faced with similar funding problems, deal with the issue the same way, some form of levy. Deschutes County has essentially a permanent two tiered levy to fund their jail & and sheriff's patrol. Linn, Marion, Washington, & Clackamas counties are examples of renewable levies. And all of those counties have higher base property tax rates than Lane County.
@Reality Nice try copper, but no... no more taxes to fund your police state.
@Reality As long as they refuse to address the real problem, I will not vote for anymore money for any more government of any kind. That my friend is Reality.
 @Reality So the money from the "levy" cannot be undercut. That doesn't mean monies from other sources, originally set aside for LCSO, can't be re-allocated because the levy offsets them.  The county has failed at proven to it's constituents that it takes this issue, not only seriously, but personally. Shutting down beds and laying of new hires is a first line defense in the corporate world. If they are truly in their position for the cause they would offer a more personal stake. Recently a county official declined a pay raise. Good start, but, if they were really committed to civil servitude they would have done better and more. The fact the raise was made very public, I'm sure, had something to do with their decision. Times are tough, perhaps government officials should look at (at least) self imposing a limited time pay cut as a show of good faith to the community that elected them.
Wont it then go to a public county wide vote? A poll is a poll, not a county wide public tax payer vote. If not, then lets all poll on things we want and turn it in and see what we get. I believe we need more patrols and that the deputies should be on the job. I dont believe the jail is or should be used as a torture chamber, as some people have requseted. Ask any deputy, the jail is not luxury and if anyone says the inmates live better than the public, then the person must be living very very poorly. I have not been in jail but I do know that the inmates do not live in luxury. Its not about that. Its about keeping repeat dangerous offenders off the streets. Its about our county roads being patrolled 24 7. Im far from pro government, but I am pro save my elderly mother if someone breaks into her home and she calls 911 and no one responds. My mother is no longer living, just an example.Â
@aaronsgma Then you should be pro-second amendment then, I am sure your elderly mother wouldn't have wanted to be defenseless. I know my elderly mother would be defenseless and quickly victimized if the fascist commies got thier way and she couldnt have a gun.
question I have is:
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Then where does the money that is being currently used to pay for the jail go?
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The whole thing is a slide of hand tax increase.
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I am just not sure why they think we are stupid enough not to notice.Â
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The poll is only effective because Lane County Commissioners have failed to fund much of anything and then put the puppet Lame County Sheriff in front of a camera and telling the citizens of Lane County how he is going to release the most outrageous offenders and stop prosecuting anything that is possibly the most offensive you've heard in a long time.Â
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Think about all the things over the last few months they said they would stop doing. Â It was an outrage.Â
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And it still is.Â
This is propoganda..."surveys" and "polls" are tools of deception. Vote no on more taxes for the police state.
 @Paul Kersey. I do find it funny that I'm registered as a DEM and my wife is a REP (we rotate every couple of years to keep it entertaining) and I've received 3 survey calls asking if I would support various measures/opinions brought forth by democrats. My wife on the other hand hasn't received any poll or survey questions. Makes you wonder if they are stacking the polls before submitting them to the public.
PS: Do you notice how quite Peter DeFazio has been on the gun issue.. He has said nothing. I say it's time for change and he must go. I wrote him on his thoughts on the gun issue and I did not hear a response. FAIL
I would like to know the number and see a list of people polled. I don't believe the libber Sheriff Tom Turner. The Sheriff that can't see the issue of gun control is the criminal and psycho's that need to be permanently in jail. This county is jumping on the ban wagon with all other Lib Tards on gun issue. I vote NO because they love spending and not budgeting themselves.
Nobody asked ME. I vote no: you donât use what I pay you now responsibly.Â
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 @souptonuts @Stooge Newton
The survey was of 600 people and at least 301 were in favor. Any other details about the survey would just confuse you. The 'government' knows best; it is your duty to provide whatever funding they require for whatever purposes and for whatever period they require.Â
@hewhoo @souptonuts spoken like a true puppet. The government loves puppets like yourself.
He was obviously kidding. Watch for sarcastic overtones.....we use them a lot, mostly to keep our sanity.
And how about NO tv, NO radio, NO newspaper, NO magazines, NO anything and keep the jail at 62 degrees. Just give them a blanket! I for one am tired of those people living better then I do while they're in jail!
I am not voting for it. Sheriff Tom Turner's tactics of releasing criminals disgusts me.
Yup like we got a choice they are ramming this down our throat..Now that they have been letting all the bad crooks go it's never going to be enough money to take care of every single need in the budget so ad more tax yep that's the answer. Does that mean the cost of gas,food,and other things are going down ( Please note sarcasm and frustrated typing) .
Be very careful what you vote for. The public unions have become very adept at deceit, hiding monies, moving monies around, etc. etc. I will not vote for more jail space or anything until it is written, published for public view, and dedicated absolutely for the purpose it was voted for. It is a pity not to be able to trust our local government, but they did it to themselves, now they have to prove they can be honest again. Be very careful. PERS has to be dealt with also so that government employees pay at least half their retirement, which is still better than most private sector retirement plans. Times are tough, time to get tough, bring things back into line and sustainable.
I really hope they plan on funding more then just the jail. Without prosecutors or patrol deputies there won't be any reason to have more beds!