Since Kitsap County departments began presenting 2026 budget plans in September, the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, facing the largest potential reductions of any department, has expressed concerns about cuts it says will prolong a climate of struggling Washington law enforcement departments.
The county is projecting a need to slowly deplete reserves each year, due to rising costs, unless an effort is made to cut spending overall, an effort that was announced earlier this year with a hiring freeze and subsequent survey of resident opinions on priorities. All departments are being asked to eliminate projected 2026 costs where possible, with KCSO at the center of deliberations as the county’s largest most expensive department.
Tasked with saving $1.7 million from its initial anticipated 2026 spending, KCSO has proposed leaving vacant positions open and generating revenue through jail bed rates to meet that target, while acknowledging that they desperately need to fill these vacancies at a time when the department’s capacity is being outpaced by county growth…