Sheriff Nowels advocates for new jail as voters prepare for $1.7 billion sales tax proposal on November ballot

The Spokane County sheriff wants voters to approve a $1.7 billion sales tax that would pay for a new jail and other public safety improvements.

Sheriff John Nowels made his case for Measure 1 during a news conference Monday while flanked by County Commissioner Mary Kuney, Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward and Spokane Police Department Assistant Chief Justin Lundgren.

Spokane County residents this November will vote on a 0.2% sales tax proposal that would raise an estimated $1.7 billion over the next 30 years. Spokane County would keep 60% of the revenue, and the remaining 40% would be distributed among cities and towns.

The county would spend roughly $540 million of its share on two new detention facilities, which would increase local jail capacity by more than 800 beds. How local governments would spend the remaining dollars isn’t yet clear, although the money would have to go toward public safety, criminal justice and behavioral health.

Nowels argues that additional jail capacity is desperately needed because the Spokane County Jail is overcrowded. On Monday, it held 675 inmates even though it was designed to hold 462.

That lack of jail space hurts public safety, Nowels said, because people facing criminal charges are being set free instead of being locked up.

“When people commit crimes in our communities, they have to be held accountable,” Nowels said.

Judges aren’t allowed to consider jail capacity when deciding whether to release someone or set bond. But Lundgren and Nowels said they believe a lack of capacity is affecting judicial decision making.

“Suspects are too often released after booking,” Lundgren said.

Lundgren said he’s unaware of any judges who have confirmed that theory, but he said historical sentencing trends suggest it’s true.

“It’s becoming apparent that our capacity is impacting and driving that decision in some cases instead of public safety,” he said.

Critics of the proposed sales tax have pointed out that, besides paying for two new detention facilities, it’s unclear what the 0.2% sales tax would fund.

Liberal politicians on the Spokane County Commission and Spokane City Council have argued that if voters are going to be asked to pay $1.7 billion in taxes, they should know exactly what they’re getting. Spokane and Spokane Valley have given no indication of how they would spend their portion of the sales tax.

“This continues to be a one billion dollar blank check to government that is fiscally irresponsible and I believe voters will see that,” Spokane City Councilman Zack Zappone wrote in a statement provided to The Spokesman-Review.

Kuney said the county and cities don’t need to figure out exactly how they’ll spend the money before Measure 1 appears on the general election ballot.

“We have time to figure this out,” she said.

Woodward said she hopes the city could use some of the revenue to pay for more police officers.

Supporters of the sales tax have said the money would go toward various programs to help inmates. For instance, the new jail and community corrections center could offer inmates GED courses and therapy for mental health or substance-abuse disorders.

Nowels said he believes increasing jail capacity would help the county reduce recidivism. He has repeatedly said that putting someone in jail is often the only way to change their behavior.

Spokane County should have built a new jail 15 years ago, the sheriff said.

“You can’t go into certain places in this county and leave anything of value in your car without expecting it to get stolen,” he said. “That’s not the Spokane I grew up in.”