By Pat Jenkins The Dispatch A Pierce County Council member has proposed raising the county's sales tax by one-tenth of 1 percent in order to provide money for programs serving the mentally ill. Councilman Stan Flemming said he's "leery" of tax increases but sees no better way to help a segment of the population that he believes is underserved. "We've been witnessing the increasing number of individuals with mental illness issues who are being treated in emergency rooms, jails and other county facilities, when what they need is timely, accurate medical treatment that identifies and targets their specific conditions,GÇ¥ said Flemming. Flemming's tax proposal, which he announced at an Oct. 21 council meeting, would benefit individuals who live in unincorporated portions of Pierce County, the same areas where the additional sales tax would be charged. Revenue collected from the increase would pay for more staff in the county jail to support mental health inmates. It would also fund recruitment and training of mental health professionals at the university doctorate and masters level. People receiving assistance would be county residents who aren't eligible for mental health coverage in their own medical plans. They would be given assistance to enroll in the state-sponsored Exchange health plan and would have to pay for those premiums themselves. People who don't qualify for any health plan would be eligible for help from the county. Flemming's proposal hinges on state government cooperation. The state would be responsible for matching funds collected by the tax at 100 percent and enacting a new hospital tax of one-tenth of one percent of admission charges. The state would collect those proceeds and pass them to the county, which would pay for additional capacity in local hospitals for mental health patients.. In addition, state law would have to be changed by the Legislature to allow inmates requiring mental health evaluations to receive those exams at the county jail within 72 hours of incarceration. The law currently allows the exams only in a state mental health facility such as Western State Hospital. Before the proposal can reach that point, the County Council must decide whether to put the measure before county voters in the form of an advisory ballot measure. Such measures aren't binding but are a barometer of public sentiment. Next year would be the earliest an advisory vote could be held. The proposal is awaiting more discussion in the council's Public Safety and Human Services Committee, whose next monthly meeting is scheduled for Nov. 10 at 1:30 p.m. at the County-City Building in Tacoma. "I have listened to citizens throughout the county and their stories of how the system has failed them," Flemming said. "However, I recognize that this is not an issue that can be resolved simply by spending more money on the problem, which is why my proposal includes both an advisory vote of the people in the unincorporated areas of the county as well as buyoff from the Legislature before any new tax can be implemented.GÇ¥ Flemming isn't a fan of tax increases but sees action at the county level as necessary to improve public help for mentally ill persons. "As leery as I am of any suggested tax, I see no better option to deal with this encroaching problem," he said, adding that the state isn't meeting its obligation to meet the need for mental health services. Proposals in recent years to increase Pierce County's sales tax have had spotty success with voters. They turned down Pierce Transit's request in 2012 for a three-tenths of 1 percent increase to boost funding for bus service. In 2011, voters approved a one-tenth of 1 percent hike in support of a new countywide 9-1-1 emergency communications system. To address anti-tax feelings among voters, Flemming said the tax increase he's proposing should be in effect for only three years. The limit would "reassure citizens that the county has no intention of continuing the tax increase once the issue has been adequately addressed, unless it is extended by a vote of the people,GÇ¥ he said.
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