Alpena County — population 28,847, 572 square miles, 1,396 county jail bookings in the last 18 months — has three law enforcement agencies patrolling its roads.

The Alpena Police Department patrols the city.

The Alpena County Sheriff’s Office patrols the remainder of the county.

Troopers from the Michigan State Police-Alpena Post, who patrol five Northeast Michigan counties, assist both agencies.

Now, thanks to a budget deficit in county government in excess of $1 million, the entire Sheriff’s Office road patrol unit could get pink slips.

That would leave the city department — which has no jurisdiction outside of city limits and couldn’t handle a county contract with its current staffing levels — and the State Police — which, again, handles five counties — to police the entire county.

That’s a risky proposition.

The county board says it has few other options for finding enough savings if a proposed tax increase on the Aug. 6 ballot doesn’t pass. The county wants voters to OK a 0.7-mill property tax hike that would cost the owner of a $100,000 house about $35 a year.

Without that tax revenue, the county board says, too many of its services are state-mandated and can’t be cut. Road patrol isn’t mandated.

We have no doubt our city and state police would do all they could to protect Alpena County residents should the county road patrol get the ax, but the math doesn’t lie. There simply may not be enough officers to go around to provide the same level of service our current law enforcement trio provides.

Voters need to consider that as they head to the polls later this summer.

(THE ALPENA NEWS)