Budget woes force Cotati to revamp traffic enforcement

<p>It was less a budget cut than a gradual wearing away, the process by which Cotati's traffic officer went from full-time to half-time to, this year, no time at all.</p><p>And now his absence is one more stinging wound for the cash-strapped city, a small but telling sign of how a slumping economy grinds away at basic city services and revenue.</p><p>The last day of the motorcycle-mounted officer dedicated to enforcing traffic laws in Cotati was Dec. 31. Starting Jan. 1, he was moved back to a regular patrol position, one of five on the city's police force.</p><p>Two officers left the department this year, and the city froze both positions. That brought the police force down to 10, including Police Chief Robert Stewart, from 14 two years ago.</p><p>Stewart said the latest shift was a question of tactics and priorities. On a depleted force, having a motorcycle officer dedicated to traffic, even half time, would impair the central mission of police patrol services.</p><p>“When you only have the number of people we have working patrol you just can't have a specialized assignment out there like that,” Stewart said.</p><p>The effect of the change on the city's traffic safety is yet to be seen — all its officers perform traffic enforcement as part of their regular duties.</p><p>But one thing very clear is that the city — already confronting a cash-flow crisis as revenue from sales and property taxes and development-related fees plummets — will make less money from traffic fines.</p><p>“It'll be a big drop,” City Manager Dianne Thompson told the city council at a recent budget discussion.</p><p>Revenue from traffic citation fees reached $84,000 in the 2008-09 fiscal year. It is projected to fall by more than half, to $37,000 to $39,000, this year, said Jone Hayes, Cotati's chief administrative officer.</p><p>That shortfall is about 30 percent of the year-end deficit of $250,000 the city projects.</p><p>“It's going to be significant,” said Hayes. “It deepens the hole the city is currently facing.”</p><p>As far as what that amount could mean to the city budget, it is roughly equivalent to the annual administrative expenses of the city manager/city clerk's office, minus salaries and benefits, Hayes said.</p><p>The traffic officer assignment was started in 2005 with a 1 ½-year grant from the state. Beginning in 2008, the city took over the funding. But the position was cut to half-time in February. And now it's gone.</p><p>Among those who drive through the city, the news provoked a range of reactions.</p><p>“I see cops around all the time pulling people over, so I'm sure they're still catching speeders,” said Tiffany Bustillos, 23, a Cotati resident. “But obviously it's bad that it's being taken away from the budget.”</p><p>Another resident, Barbara Parry, 67, said: “That's not a service to cut. We need a full-time traffic cop. It scares me because it makes me say, ‘What's next?'”</p><p>But Parry's companion, Rohnert Park resident Shirley Syiek, 85 — who said her husband had been a Boston police officer — had a different reaction.</p><p>“I got stopped on East Cotati Avenue — first ticket I ever had, it was $200,” Syiek said. “An old lady, and my record and all, but no compassion. He said, ‘I have a goal to meet.' No, he said, ‘a quota.'”</p><p>“A lot of people had a problem with him,” Parry said.</p><p>Regarding a quota, Cotati Police Sgt. Dennis Wallach said: “I can tell you right now, there's no such thing. They are unlawful. We do not have quotas. She obviously misunderstood the officer.”</p>