Homedale councilman says he won't push issue of dumping police department

Homedale City Councilman Tim Downing raised the issue of dumping the city police department in favor of contracting with the Owyhee County Sheriff's Office.

Downing, who is serving the last of his four-year term on the council, said Friday that he raised the issue for discussion to determine if the city could save money. About 50 people turned out to a Homedale City Council meeting Thursday night to discuss it.

"If it was a situation where we could save the taxpayers money, then we would do that," Downing said. "My goal was to let people know there was an option there and find out."

Downing said he doesn't plan to push the issue of contracting with the county for law enforcement.

"No, I'm not going to keep pushing this. The answer would be no," Downing said. "It may come up in the future, in two or three years."

The city budgeted $309,404 for the police department this year, while the city schools chipped in $15,000 to pay for a school resource officer.

Homedale Mayor Harold S. Wilson, who is in the second year of his first term as mayor, was adamant about keeping the city police department.

"The city will not get involved in trying to get rid of our city police. That was a one-man agenda," Wilson said Friday.

The city of Homedale, which is about 18 miles west of Caldwell in Owyhee County, has about 2,600 residents. The city's police department currently has four officers, including the chief, but the department started the year with six officers.

Wilson said it's hard for the city to keep officers, in part because of the pay. He said that's why the city raised officers' salaries this year. Starting pay for the officers is now $14 an hour, and the chief is now making close to $18 an hour.

"A guy out there who is going to get shot for $13 an hour? I wouldn't do it," Wilson said of the need for the raises. "And we've been losing officers."

Downing said he voted against the raises in a split vote on the four-member council. The mayor cast the tie-breaking vote in favor of the pay raises.