Council makes right move

Bingen, following the terms of the existing police services contract -- agreed to by both cities in 2000 and reaffirmed in 2008 -- had been paying about 23 percent of the total costs of the joint Bingen-White Salmon Police Department. In a gesture of good faith, the Bingen City Council voluntarily offered to boost that percentage to 32 percent.

That nine percent increase translates into an additional $80,000 that will be pumped into the city of White Salmon's budget for 2011. That's huge for a city that has been facing budget troubles of almost epic proportions over the last few years.

And what did White Salmon have to give up for the right to be handed an extra $80,000 per year to cover the joint Police Department? In our view, almost nothing.

Bingen asked that White Salmon promise to hire a new police officer and a police chief early in 2011. However, the Bingen-White Salmon Police Department saw its police chief resign in 2010, and also lost a new recruit in 2010 due to injury. As a result, the force was down to only four officers, when eight is what the police contract calls for. After losing two officers in 2010, replacing those two was the minimum necessary to have a viable Police Department -- whether Bingen asked for it or not.

The only other notable item Bingen wanted in exchange for the additional payment was to allow the mayor of Bingen to have some oversight authority when it comes to operations of the Bingen-White Salmon Police Department within the city limits of Bingen. That hardly seems unreasonable, and we believe White Salmon made the right call in not allowing that essentially innocuous clause to kill the overall deal.

All sides win with this amended contract: the city of White Salmon gains needed revenue; the city of Bingen does not have to start from scratch and build its own police force; and citizens of both communities will be able to maintain a stable police force.

We believe White Salmon's council members made the right call with this vote. They deserve praise for a wise move that should bring strong benefits to the city of White Salmon and its residents.

JB