Eaton County Sheriff ends out-county day patrols
DEVELOPING: Eaton County Sheriff flips on out-county patrols.
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – The “dire” state of Eaton County’s finances has led Sheriff Tom Reich to eliminate out-county patrols effective in 30 days.
On Wednesday, elected Sheriff Tom Reich sent an email to the entire sheriff’s department announcing an elimination of overtime and reduction in out-county patrol operations.
“Over the past two years, we have been operating with a short staff. To manage this, we have been filling vacancies, vacations, and sick time by using overtime,” Reich wrote. “Today, I was informed that the Sheriff’s Office must cut overtime due to budget constraints. Unfortunately, our overtime budget has been exhausted, though there will still be times when overtime must be authorized. Due to these cuts and our current staffing situation, we will no longer operate the out-county 12:00 PM to 12:00 AM shift.”
Out-county includes the county’s townships and smaller municipalities. It does not include Delta Township, which pays the county for sheriff patrols. Charlotte, Eaton Rapids, Grand Ledge and Potterville have their own police departments and would not be as impacted by the patrol cuts as smaller communities such as Vermontville.
A county spokesman told 6 News Thursday night the staffing shift was to take effect immediately, but Reich, in an interview with 6 News’ Nate Salazar Friday, says the shift will happen in 30 days.
The move comes after Eaton County Commissioners received the county’s Financial Stability Work Group issued 2024 Financial Stability Report on May 10. The four Eaton Commissioners who sat on the committee issued a dramatic warning.
“The County has projected a $1.3 million shortfall in FY 2024/2025, which will compound to a $23.4 million shortfall within two fiscal years, despite cost-saving measures taken over the last several years,” the executive summary reports.
Eaton County’s current budget is $47,161,000. Public safety costs are “roughly 41%” of the budget says County Communications Director Logan Bailey. That amount includes not only the Sheriff’s Department, but other departments such as Animal Control and Zoning Enforcement, he says.
2024 Financial Stability ReportDownload
Bailey tells 6 News the financial situation is “dire.”
In response to the report, Commissioners voted unanimously on May 15 to create a County Advisory Tax Limitation Committee. The job of that Committee is to review the county’s financial health and taxation levels and determine if changes in the current amount of taxes are necessary.
That committee is expected to propose a taxation question for the November ballot. Whatever recommendation is made by the body must be put on the ballot under state law, Bailey tells 6 News
Eaton County has not reviewed its limit since 1978, despite facing rising costs of operations for nearly a half-century.
“The shortfalls in the May report from the Financial Stability work Group is a projected model,” Bailey tells 6 News, “and in reality, as this 2024/205 budget process moves forward over the next few months, that shortfall could get a lot worse.”
UPDATE: This story has been updated to explain what out-county means as well as with new information that the patrol schedule will change in 30 days.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WLNS 6 News.
