Cities Push for End to Jail Booking Fees

Eager to unload a $3-million debt, politicians from every Ventura County city are pressing the Board of Supervisors to stop billing them for the cost of booking inmates into jail.

Instead of charging cities, local leaders say, the supervisors should dip into Proposition 172 half-cent sales tax revenues, which have been set aside to meet public safety needs.

Simi Valley Mayor Greg Stratton first urged this approach in December, arguing that the county should assume responsibility for the booking fees of $120 per inmate. By covering the costs with sales-tax money, he said, supervisors would free up funds for cities to hire more police or buy new patrol cars.

In a five-page response detailing the county’s fiscal crunch, Supervisor Susan K. Lacey rejected Stratton’s appeal.

But the Simi Valley mayor won’t drop the issue.

And this time around, he is backed by council members from the nine other Ventura County cities.

Representatives from each city this week agreed to sign a letter pleading for relief from the booking fees. The lineup of 10 signatures, Stratton said, should signal the “political weight” backing his plan.

And indeed, the council members’ tenacity earned some praise from Supervisor John K. Flynn, who suggested that his colleagues consider reopening discussions with city leaders.

“We’ve got to break down some of the animosity that exists between cities and the county,” Flynn said. “And if we can buy some (goodwill) by knocking down the fees, we ought to take a look at it.”

Since supervisors imposed the charges three years ago, to make up for state funding cuts, city officials have refused to pay a nickel. The bills keep accumulating, though--and so far, the cities have racked up a $3-million debt for suspects arrested in their jurisdictions and processed at the County Jail.

County officials have been powerless to collect because they must await the outcome of a lawsuit that city leaders have filed to protest the booking fees.

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A Superior Court judge has already ruled that counties have the power to bill cities for the cost of fingerprinting and photographing inmates, but several other aspects of the case are still pending, according to Assistant County Counsel Noel Klebaum.

In the meantime, Stratton hopes the cities’ collective appeal will prompt the supervisors to reconsider use of the Proposition 172 funds.

The supervisors have already allocated $24 million to law enforcement, including the new Todd Road jail and the district attorney’s office. And they’ve hinted at plans to give an undetermined sum to the County Fire Department.

But city leaders suspect the supervisors can find enough left over to cover the jail booking costs. Such a move would wipe out substantial city debt and give local politicians more law-enforcement money to play with.

Simi Valley, for example, would save up to $100,000 a year--”enough to buy another police officer or two,” Stratton said.

And Thousand Oaks would reap an even bigger windfall. Eliminating existing debt would free up $400,000 that the city now holds in reserve in case the court orders payment of back bills, City Councilman Frank Schillo said. “That money could be used for law enforcement locally,” he said.

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The potential for bigger police budgets sounded alluring to Sheriff’s Cmdr. Kathy Kemp, who heads the Thousand Oaks force.

“Obviously, the city of Thousand Oaks could use more officers so we can remain a proactive police force,” Kemp said. “It would be very beneficial to me if the city and county could work this out in that manner.”

But agreement remains a long shot.

Supervisor Maria VanderKolk said she could not support eliminating the booking fees, since the money is supposed to help the county recover from state raids on law-enforcement coffers.

“I understand their frustration, I really do,” VanderKolk said. “But we’ve got responsibilities to take care of, and we’ve sustained a lot worse cuts than they have.”

Recognizing the county’s budget crunch, Camarillo Mayor Ken Gose said he wasn’t optimistic about an agreement. “I don’t have a lot of hopes,” Gose said. “But we know we won’t get anything if we don’t try.”