The Board of Lewis County Commissioners (BOCC) will host three planning meetings in the coming weeks as county officials continue work to adopt a budget for 2025.
The meetings come after Lewis County Commissioner Lindsey Pollock said, “It is no secret that we are in the red on the budget” during a candidate debate hosted by The Chronicle on Thursday.
“One of the biggest places that we have to look at is the middle management area of the county,” Pollock said. “I look forward to seeing how that goes as we come into the budget season.”
During the all-day meetings, county commissioners and staff will discuss their budget requests for the upcoming years. The first of the three meetings was held Monday with staff from the human resources, public works, community development, capital projects, public defense, district court and WSU Extension all meeting with the county commissioners.
Last year, commissioners formally approved the county’s 2024 budget over an objection from Pollock, who claimed the budget was over-reliant on reserve funds. She called for fiscal responsibility, including from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
The initial 2024 budget included expenditures of $200.1 million and revenue of $172.2 million. In November 2023, Lewis County eliminated six positions to “conservatively” save $500,000 yearly as staff worked to address a budget deficit.
In recent weeks, county commissioners have voiced concerns over the cost of public defense, particularly after new caseload limits — or “standards” — adopted by the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) would reduce the maximum caseload for public defenders.
According to data provided by the county, Lewis County spent between $1.3 million and $2 million on indigent defense each year between 2013 and 2022. The Washington State Supreme Court will hold a second public hearing on the standards in November.
With rising expenses, Pollock said the county must also consider ways to increase revenue, including increased timber sales.
The commissioners will host two more public budget meetings on Oct. 2 and 9. Both meetings will begin at 9 a.m.
On Oct. 2, the commissioners will discuss public health and social services, IT, facilities, 911 Communications, the auditor’s office, fair and parks, noxious weeds and the BOCC and county administration.
The Oct. 9 budget meeting will discuss the proposed budgets of the clerk’s office, the treasurer’s office, the prosecuting attorney’s office, the assessor’s office, the coroner’s office, the sheriff’s office and jail, the superior court and the juvenile court.
The meetings will be held at the Lewis County Courthouse in Chehalis.
