LAKEPORT – Concerned over statements by the city manager that their department could see four positions cut from its roster, the Lakeport Police Officers Association on Friday said they want the community to be aware of what budget issues are looming for the city.

Association President Norman Taylor said Lake City Manager Jerry Gillham has offered the City Council the option of leaving vacant two police officer positions and laying off two others in order to balance the city’s budget.

The department currently has 14 sworn officer positions – including 12 officers, Chief Kevin Burke and Lt. Brad Rasmussen, said Taylor. There are currently two vacant positions.

That staffing level has been in effect since 1996, according to police records.

The association is urging the community to attend upcoming council meetings on the budget, including a 4 p.m. budget session on Tuesday, June 10, at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St., when Burke will present his proposed 2008-09 fiscal year budget. The city is supposed to vote on a full budget June 24.

City officials have said that they're looking at a budget shortfall of more than $1 million.

Gillham – who did not return a call seeking comment on Friday – discussed the possibility of laying off police officers in an April interview with Lake County News, the same month as a city budget session hinted that layoffs of city staff could take place.

Taylor said Gillham took a more direct approach with city staff in early May.

“He actually held a meeting with the city employees to give them a state of the city, so to speak,” said Taylor.

During that meeting, Gillham told staff that, because of budget shortfalls, police officers and positions within other departments would be cut.

“He's being very particular with his words to make it seem as if he's not proposing this – he's just saying these are options that are available to the council – but certainly that is an option he's bringing forward,” said Taylor.

Taylor, who has been with the Lakeport Police Department since 1992, said there has never before been a suggestion of layoffs during his time there.

Cutting four officers' positions, he said, would put the department at 1970s staffing levels.

Gillham's statements about layoffs come at a time when the city is growing both in size and in population. The city's proposal to annex an area along Parallel Drive recently was approved last month, and the city population had grown by more than 500 residents – or about 10 percent – according to Census data from 2000 to 2006.

Just the suggestion of layoffs, Taylro said, could make it very difficult for the department to recruit high-quality applicants going forward, because it will raise the issue of the agency's stability.

If staffing levels were cut, he said, it would hamper officers' ability to respond in emergency situations, and could raise the issue of officer safety. Even at current staffing levels, officers have backup available less than half the time.

Cuts also would affect the department's ability to be proactive in investigations, a factor which helped it quickly conclude the stabbing case which took place in Library Park in March 2007, Taylor said.

Burke said he is still working on his presentation for Tuesday.

“Coming up with a proposed budget has been a real challenge, knowing that the city is facing some stiff financial problems,” he said.

Burke said he's planning to recommend the council look at a balance between the staffing needed to protect the public and achieve some financial relief for the city during its financial crisis.

He is concerned about cutting current staffing, which he said is at an appropriate level for the department and the city.

But if the city were to take the drastic step of cutting four positions, Burke said the ramifications would be huge.

It would mean no school resource officer for the Lakeport Unified School District, no presence on the Lake County Narcotic Task Force and impacts on community services, with response times to emergencies likely to increase, he said.

He and Rasmussen would have to set aside their administrative duties and spend more time on patrol than they currently do, he added.

It also could mean that investigations are severely curtailed.

A task force currently is working on the Barbara LaForge murder case, he said. Taylor, a department detective, also is spending a lot of time on the investigation. However, if patrol spots need to be filled, those investigative duties – on old and new cases alike – will have less resources available to them.

Mayor Buzz Bruns said no decision will be made Tuesday, that the session is for the sake of information gathering.

Bruns said he personally doesn't want to cut police officers, and the council is examining its options. “We're just looking for any way to cut this deficit.”

The police association, he pointed out, recently came to the council for a raise, another budget strain.

Councilman Jim Irwin, who in council meetings has emphasized that he wants a balanced budget going forward, said he doesn't want the city to go into debt with no end in sight.

“All we know about the big picture is we're running about $1 million short, same as we were last year,” he said, although last year the Vista Point sale brought in about $1 million to help the city catch up.

“I'm definitely one of the ones who's pushing that we need to get sustainable levels of services going,” he said, adding that he doesn't yet know what a sustainable budget will mean for the city.

He's heard Gillham suggest cutting four police officers and two parks staff, said Irwin, but nothing has been crossed off of any city department budget yet.

However, he added, “I don't want to take anything off the table. I want to keep all options open.”

Irwin said he would cut other expenses first – such as training and travel – before resorting to police layoffs.

“I'd like to figure out a way for the city to make it but the numbers have to be there,” he said.

The budget won't start to take real shape until later this month, said Irwin, as the council crafts a final document for approval.

Supervisor Anthony Farrington, whose district includes Lakeport, said he and Supervisor Rob Brown met with Gillham previous to last week's joint meeting between the Board of Supervisors and council. At that time, Gillham mentioned the need to cut some services – such as its contract for county animal control services – in order to save police positions.

Farrington said he offered to help Gillham look at his budget numbers. “He never really got back to me on that.”

In order to address law enforcement concerns, Farrington said he also suggested opening a dialogue about consolidating services between Lakeport Police and the sheriff's office.

“To lose four officers because you're having budget problems, you have to look outside the box and look at all options before cutting those positions,” he said.

However, Gillham didn't respond to that suggestion, either, he said.

Ultimately, the City Council will have to decide the fate of the police department's staffing, said Burke. “I don't envy them that.”

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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