With King County facing a $56 million budget shortfall in the coming year, the race for county executive seems more like a contest to determine which candidate will do less harm. Susan Hutchison said she would reprioritize the areas that are most important to the county. She said these are the sheriff’s office, the prosecutor’s office, the county courts, and public health.

Public safety has been an issue in the race since budget cuts and staff reductions in the sheriff’s department under current executive Kurt Triplett. Hutchison said these cuts, as well as cuts in the prosecutor’s office have resulted in crime without punishment.

“We don’t have enough prosecutors to prosecute [criminals]. The police are not even bothering to pick them up,” she said.

Hutchison said crime reduction is important to protecting small businesses, which she calls “the engine of our economy” in her voter’s pamphlet profile.

Business has been a focus for Hutchison, who announced her campaign at a jobs fair because she wanted to underscore the importance of “working toward policies that help small businesses grow and thrive.”

Business owners and executives make up the largest group of contributors to Hutchison’s campaign, donating about $112,000.

Hutchison said she would work with the state to reform the business and occupation tax, which is calculated on a business’ gross income as opposed to its net income.

“The process is long, unpredictable, unreliable and costs too much,” Hutchison said.

Washington State imposes a B&O tax and cities may as well, but King County does not have a B&O tax.

According to Hall Walker, chief economist for the King County Executive Office, the county is not involved in the levying or collecting of any B&O tax.

“Counties in Washington do not have the ability to levy a B&O tax,” Walker said.

Only a 2/3 legislative majority can alter the state B&O tax.

King County’s largest source of revenue is property tax, which Hutchison has said she would not raise. She has consistently criticized her opponent, Dow Constantine, for his record of raising taxes while serving as a member of the King County Council.

Hutchison’s proposed budget priorities offer a vague plan for reducing county spending. And although her proposal does not include raising taxes, she does suggest sending a property tax levy to voters in order to generate revenue dedicated to funding human services.

Hutchison said one of these services is the county’s sexual assault support and counseling program. The program is run out of Harborview, a county hospital, and, according to Hutchison, is one of the best programs in the country.

“Their budget is very closely tied to the county because the county contracts with [Harborview] to provide those services. That would be one area of great concern,” Hutchison said.

Other services and programs Hutchison would dedicate funding from the tax levy included programs for the disabled.

“We want to make sure that we provide for the most vulnerable among us and those are the ones who cannot care for themselves,” she said.

Hutchison said the county runs two programs for the disabled; one focuses on children from birth through age three.

“The services that are provided for our developmentally disabled at those ages can actually save us a lot of money in the long run, because it means that by intervening early we can make sure that these children have the best opportunity to succeed in the mainstream,” Hutchison said.

The second program facilitates the transition to work from high school, which Hutchison said was “a very important part of helping our disabled community become productive citizens.”

Hutchison has other county program reforms in mind, including turning over management of the jails to the Sheriff’s Office.

“We’ll combine the administrative work, by streamlining that we save money,” she said.

Hutchison has pledged to work closely with King County Sheriff Sue Rahr calling it a “new spirit of collaboration.”

But Hutchison would not comment on the proposal currently being considered by the Committee of the Whole that would direct county sheriffs not to actively enforce immigration law. The proposal would prohibit the sheriffs as well as county health facilities from asking people for immigration papers. The Sheriff’s office would not be able to investigate, detain or arrest people for immigration violations.

The proposal is intended to foster a better relationship between county populations that are timid to report crime or seek public health services.

Hutchison would not commit her support to the proposal, saying, “We set policies we change policies we improve policies—we do all kinds of things with policies. But we have to obey the law of the land.”

Hutchison did say she wanted to create a better relationship with immigrant communities, identifying the Latino community as one of the fastest growing populations in the county.

“The key is communication. And I’m a communicator. I understand the tremendous importance of reaching out to our immigrant population and giving them an opportunity to be heard,” Hutchison said.

Hutchison did not give any specific methods for creating opportunities for two-way communication between such groups and the Executive Office, but promised that information would be available in all the languages spoken in King County.

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