May 19, Dear Taxpayers and County Officials:

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1 May 19, 2014 Dear Taxpayers and County Officials: Attached to this letter is my Office s preliminary budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2015, beginning October 1, I am pleased to present it for your review and consideration, and look forward to discussing any comments or concerns you might have. As an initial matter, I note my support for the revised budget process used this year by the Board of County Commissioners and the Auditor/Controller. While past practice was sufficient to past purposes, a predictable process with an enhanced focus on the transparent and collaborative development of the critical tentative budget in late July is most welcome. I look forward to further discussing the unique needs of my Office with you all, and the ways by which I can balance those needs with my continuing commitment to the County's economic well-being. I furthermore appreciated the opportunity on April 1 and 14, 2014 to discuss the County's fund balance with my fellow elected officials and the Controller. I agree that maintaining a balance of approximately 33%, as recommended by the Auditor, Controller, and outside auditor, is prudent. I also continue to believe, quite strongly, that we must capitalize upon our present circumstances to address the County's most pressing needs. As I see it, those pressing needs include the development of an actionable plan to somehow address the Jail problem, and an immediate and sustainable correction of internal and external salary inequities. The Jail Problem As to the former, I emphasize my belief that the County's solution should not be to simply add bed space. To my mind, the problem runs both deeper and more nuanced, and so requires an equally complex solution. At this point, based on the information that has been made available, I do not think the proposed on-site million dollar expansion adequately addresses the heart of the problem. However, I am heartened by the reinvigoration of discussion regarding the Jail problem, and I strongly believe that a significant portion of the existing fund balance should be reserved to its solution. That said, expanded capacity is necessary but not sufficient to such a solution. I support a programmatic approach to the Jail problem, which might certainly involve the construction of permanent on-campus structures - but only in such form as will continue to serve substantive purpose in the future. I think that voters will continue to reject "all or nothing" proposals, and that spending time and money to build complete stand-alone components on a fiscal year by fiscal year basis will both solve

2 immediate problems and build the trust necessary to the next (inevitable) request for taxpayer approval of a new jail. For example, I would rather invest in the construction of dedicated pretrial/alternative sentencing and misdemeanor probation facilities on campus - which will always be needed and contributes to a lasting solution - rather than the creation of additional general purpose bed space - which will simply fill up and possibly create more short-term problems than fixes. Investment in Employees There should be no doubt that our current cohort of elected and appointed County officials are committed to sound principles of fiscal conservatism. As I understand matters, the surplus fund balance of approximately $15 million dollars is a direct reflection of our mutual effort to hold the line on expenses. We have all worked hard to protect our taxpayers' interests. The consequences of our shared commitment to such interests are significant, and we must stay strong in our approach to prudent stewardship of taxpayer dollars. As we discussed on April 1 and 14 in open meeting, it is not appropriate to simply stockpile those funds; sometimes, the greater good is in the wise expenditure of monies. While it may be easier to not spend than to spend wisely, the time has come for the County to demonstrably acknowledge that the high quality service the people of Canyon County deserve from their public servants requires the implementation of a competitive compensation system that puts an appropriate value on the critical services our employees provide. The fact of the matter is that government services are too important to be left to the otherwise unemployable and too great in scope to be left only to the few hypothetical idealists who might sacrifice their own family's economic well-being to serve the greater good. Plainly speaking, the County's employees are underpaid and our failure to remedy such circumstances will result in far greater harm to the community than any of us, acting within our areas of expertise as Elected Officials, would otherwise countenance on our watch. I strongly support a comprehensive evaluation of the County's compensation system, the elimination of the outdated and easily manipulated "blue sheet" system, and the implementation of an immediate, significant, and sustainable upward adjustment of employee salaries. Although it may be more politically convenient to maximize the "return" of funds to our taxpayers, the consequences of such convenience seriously undermine the public interest in an efficient and effective provision of government services. Locally, the popular media narrative seems to have historically focused on opportunities that public employees might have in the private sector, should they wish to earn a higher wage. Rather than justifying the continued underpayment of our employees by conceding to this trope, it is critically important that our County's elected and appointed officials deny the viability of this oversimplification

3 and demand that the County's employees be recognized for their worth as our most valuable resource. In addition to much needed salary equalization, I believe the County's healthcare plan requires sustainable annual investment. Certainly, I understand that the complexities and potential consequences of "ObamaCare" as it is popularly understood are daunting, if not disastrous. Like any other employer, however, we would do a disservice to our employees if we let political agendas in Washington, D.C. compromise their families' access to healthcare without a fight. We can't fix the federal system from here, but we can correct for it insofar as our employees go. It seems plain that health care costs will continue to rise, and that the over-allocation of those increases to employees while providing static and uncompetitive salaries - will have dire effect in terms of the County's ability to efficiently provide high quality service to the public. Taxpayer Relief Although I firmly believe that the County should devote the greater share of the surplus fund balance to righting past wrongs and planning for the future by investing heavily in our employees and adopting a nuanced and programmatic approach to the Jail problem, we will of course continue to owe local taxpayers the benefit of ongoing responsible stewardship of their hard-earned dollars. After providing for efficient, effective, and sustainable service through the allocation of adequate funding as described above, surplus should be returned. That is to say, the County should continue to set an example for other taxing districts in our approach to taxes - but not at the expense of our ability to provide for the public safety and other services. In addition to consistently distinguishing between needs and wants, guarding against abusive spending practice, and treating our budgets with at least the same forbearing frugality with which a reasonable person would treat their own household budget in these uncertain times, I think that the County's elected and appointed officials should supplement our return of unnecessary tax dollars with a commitment to transparency and specificity. I will continue to do my part by publically posting every taxpayer dollar spent by my Office to the County website and by making every effort to avoid categorizing any purchase made at public expense as "miscellaneous". Highlights of the CCPA FY2015 Budget The CCP A budget will again have two separate divisions: one for our County operation and one for the Nampa prosecution services contract. I will not commingle funds from these divisions, and expect each to again be entirely self-sufficient. In addition to the annual preliminary budget request spreadsheet, I've attached line-by-line breakdowns for both budgets to this letter. These depict CCPA spending for FY2012 and FY2013, along with our spending through April 2014, and offer

4 additional explanation where necessary to document how we arrived at our FY2015 preliminary request. "A" Budget I understand that the BOCC has asked the County's officials to hold off on requesting increases pending receipt of a comprehensive salary analysis by Human Resources, and that the Auditor/Controller have asked that we similarly not break our request down on an employee-byemployee basis. I appreciate the thoughtful recognition of the need for County-wide salary adjustment and the scope of each official's elected authority that these requests reflect, and am happy to abide by them. Suffice it to say, however, that request the highest possible sustainable appropriation be made to my "A" budget in order that all CCP A employees might have their salaries adjusted for cost of living and inflation, while some CCP A employees be further recognized for their outstanding contributions to the effective and efficient operation of our Office. I would assure the Board of County Commissioners, and every other elected official, that I will be steadfast in my support of both County-wide increases and the authority of each Elected Official to administer their appropriation as they best see fit, regardless of political or public pressures. Our employees are our most valuable resource, and have been neglected for far too long. I am more than happy to be accountable for explaining this to the public, and will be able to articulate as well the justification for the amount of any salary increase I assign to any of my employees. In addition, please note that we are in the process of finalizing job descriptions for our Deputy Prosecutor positions, including the Civil Division's county attorneys; my understanding is that such job descriptions have never before existed in the County. Their adoption will help to regulate attorney salaries, as classifications of Deputy Prosecutor from Provisional to Senior will provide much-needed uniformity. We have also, as memorialized in our provision of salary analysis information to Human Resources, begun a process aimed at distinguishing between CCP A reception/intake with our legal secretaries and quasi-paralegals, who are expected to administer each case we open while assigned Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys focus on managing such caseload. I also request the creation of at least two new attorney positions and one journey-level legal secretary position. One of the attorneys is needed to keep up with the ever increasing demand in Child Protection Act cases. The other, along with the new secretary position, is desperately needed by the county attorneys in my Civil Division. I would note that for FY2014, the county attorneys have been logging time and caseload with a specificity that has never before been documented in the

5 CCP A, and I am looking forward to sharing the results of that project with my fellow County officials and the public in hopes of continuing to move to a budgeting practice for Civil that accounts for the demands of our officials, and the work we do on behalf of each Office and Department. Our Nampa operation will remain fully staffed with nine full-time employees, including three misdemeanor attorneys, four support staff, one bilingual victim witness coordinator, and a deputy prosecutor housed in the Caldwell office whose salary will continue to represent the significant overlap between our County and City duties and the Nampa operation's staffing needs. Note that the CCPA also remains home to a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney assigned to criminal gang prosecution. This position is funded by the Treasure Valley Partnership and the Idaho Department of Corrections, although its salary is included in the CCPA county division budget calculations. "B" Budget Regarding the "B" side of my budget, I continue to look for ways to increase specificity and eliminate unnecessary lines. I request an increase to our appropriation in the approximate amount of $8,000 to accommodate past experience with increasing trial costs, the expense of legal research, and other bare necessities. As to capital expenses, CCPA's routine needs for FY2015 is anticipated to again involve only expenditures necessary to maintain computer equipment. However, I ask that the needs of CCPA be strongly considered when calculating a budget for the courthouse remodel and our move to the third floor. Please note my belief that the "B" costs of adding the additional staff I have requested for FY2015 should be fully accommodated by more accurately capturing and attributing Bar and IPAA dues, as well as database licenses, used by the Nampa unit to that budget. Conclusion As of May 19, 2014, the attached preliminary budget represents my best effort to limit the expense of providing criminal prosecution for the local community and civil advice to County officials. I appreciate your consideration of the proposed FY2015 budget, and will look forward to receiving any comments and discussing any concerns you might have. I am particularly looking forward to the creation of a "Nampa operations and capital improvements" line to that Unit's budget as I have discussed with the Controller. That line will be funded in the Nampa budget by the unused revenue from that contract since FY2012. I intend that these funds, which currently sum approximately

6 $32,000, be used to offset unexpected trial expenses associated with the Nampa operation as well as the consolidation of courtrooms, and for potential reinvestment in the NPD and Family Justice Center operations as necessary and possible. As always, I am open to any suggestion that offers cost-effective methods to achieve the mission of the CCPA: to protect the community and facilitate a well-functioning County government by pursuing justice and providing accurate and ethical counsel with dedication, courage, and integrity. Proudly serving Canyon County and the cause of justice, Bryan Taylor, J.D., Ph.D.