County prepares for state shutdown

Whitman County Commissioners posted a letter to elected officials and department heads Monday in preparation of the possible state shutdown. Commissioners hoped a settlement to the state budget would be reached by week’s end, but felt they had a responsibility to prepare for that situation. Commissioner Art Swannack noted the county does not have the finances to cover the state’s share of local services it currently pays. From conversations with elected officials and department heads, a short-term shutdown could be managed with minor impacts while a longer shutdown could cause “significant” impacts to programs deemed non-essential by the state.

“The Whitman County Commissioners have become very concerned that a shutdown of Washington State government is now highly likely. The Governor has stated he will not sign a continuing resolution allowing state government to continue functioning in an interim period if a budget deal is not reached this week. The legislature must approve a budget by the middle of this week for it to be implemented by July 1st,” the letter reads.

“It is clear to the BOCC there isn’t enough money from our local county funding sources to cover those funds which the state of Washington normally supplies.

We have decided we cannot backfill through a budget amendment any state funds that you spend after July 1st but for which you do not receive your expected reimbursement due to a shutdown of Washington State Government.

There is no obligation for Washington State to reimburse you for any non-essential services you performed when a state budget is not in place.

Therefore you must identify those portions of your budget that are funded by the state of Washington and decide on the impact to your operations and if a furlough of employees will be required.

If you need to furlough employees, you must talk with Kelli Campbell in HR to determine your and the county’s obligations under applicable bargaining contracts.

You also must report the financial impacts to Gary Petrovich by the end of business June 30th, 2017.

We hope this won’t happen, but it is looking likely.”

Each department is responsible for contacting whichever state agency it receives funds from and asking if it is essential or non-essential. Swannack stated the Community Development Block Grant which funds the Community Action Center would be suspended. Household hazardous waste programs and recycling funding would also be suspended.

As the transportation budget was already approved and signed by the governor, road funds are safe. Other grants, such as facilities upgrades, have been used so they aren’t an issue either. Developmental Services County Coordinator Janel Goebel reported to commissioners that department has the required reserves to continue operations for a time.

As law enforcement and courts are considered essential, neither the Sheriff’s Office nor Prosecutor expect to be impacted by a shutdown.

The status of the state budget was still unknown as of Gazette deadline.