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Sisters, Oregon
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The contents of the on-line edition of The Nugget represent a selection among the stories that appear in the weekly print edition.

Measure would stabilize funding
By Jim Cornelius

Sheriff Les Stiles is hoping that voters in Oregon will approve Ballot Measure 18, which would stabilize funding for the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office and other districts.

The measure is not a new tax -- although Stiles and others report some voter confusion on that score. The measure simply allows the sheriff to ask voters to form a permanent "split rate" tax district.

Dechutes County residents currently pay for sheriff's services through a property tax levy -- at 78 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation for city-dwellers; $1.12 per $1,000 for those living in unincorporated areas.

The sheriff's office must seek a new levy every three years or so to fund operations. That creates uncertainty about funding that makes it hard to sign long-term contracts with service and equipment providers.

"I can't sign a contract that has a life-span longer than three years," Stiles said.

According to Stiles, some top-quality personnel have left because the instability of funding means jobs are not secure.

"If I only did one thing as sheriff, if we can create stable funding I will walk away a satisfied man," Stiles said.

Stiles is worried that the ballot title will push tax-weary voters into a mistaken "no" vote.

"The weakest part of Measure 18 is the title," he said. "It's got 'tax rate' and 'permanent' in it."

Measure 18 is enabling legislation to allow split rate districts.

If it passes, the sheriff would still have to ask voters to actually create the district.

Voters would also have to approve any change in the tax rate.

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