Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff's Guild

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Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff's Guild
The Deputy Sheriff's Guild was established in 1996 to represent the law enforcement deputies and sergeants of the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office.

10/15/2026

Our workload has skyrocketed, but our team size hasn’t kept pace—and now we face potential budget cuts.

By the end of this year, we are projected to handle 45,397 calls for service—a massive 84% increase in community need since 2004.

Meanwhile, our street-level capacity remains flat. Despite having 92 authorized positions, an ongoing staffing shortage leaves us with an average of just 75 deployable personnel to handle the surge due to vacancies, training tracks, and medical leave.

Here is what that looks like for our team:

OPERATIONAL METRICS COMPARISON

🔹 Total Calls for Service
• 2004 Historical (Est.): 24,648
• 2026 Projected: 45,397 (+84%)

🔹 Estimated Deployable Staff
• 2004 Historical (Est.): 65 to 72
• 2026 Projected: 75 (Average)

🔹 Annual Calls Per Officer
• 2004 Historical (Est.): 342 to 379
• 2026 Projected: 605 (Up to +77%)

Our frontline personnel are absorbing an unprecedented operational burden to keep our community safe. Despite these numbers, there is a proposal on the table to cut 6 deputy positions. Reducing our authorized staffing further will severely impact response times and public safety.

How you can help: Please reach out to the Whatcom County Council and the County Executive today. Ask them to reject these cuts and protect your community's emergency response resources.

📧 Whatcom County Council: [email protected]

📧 Whatcom County Executive: [email protected]

🚨 WHATCOM COUNTY SAFETY ALERT: STOP THE BUDGET CUTS 🚨Budgets are just numbers on a page—but staffing cuts affect actual,...
10/10/2026

🚨 WHATCOM COUNTY SAFETY ALERT: STOP THE BUDGET CUTS 🚨

Budgets are just numbers on a page—but staffing cuts affect actual, living people.
Right now, the Whatcom County Executive is proposing a budget that permanently CUTS 6 deputy positions.

The Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff's Guild is standing up to say: NO. Public safety must be our county's absolute #1 priority.

Here is the raw, terrifying math of what is happening to our local law enforcement:

📉 THE STAGNANT 26-YEAR TIMELINE

Look at how much our community has grown vs. how little our department has been allowed to expand:
• Year 2000: ~74,000 rural residents protected by 60 total sworn staff.
• Year 2004: ~78,000 rural residents protected by 72 total sworn staff.
• Today (2026): ~95,000 rural residents. Population exploded by 21,000 people.
• Our sworn staff today (including administrative positions): Just 80 out of an authorized 92 full time positions.
Over a quarter of a century, our coverage has basically flatlined. Now, they want to shrink our authorized deputy ceiling from 92 down to 86. They are forcing us to fight modern crises with a workforce frozen in the late 1990s.

📊 THE UNINCORPORATED FOOTPRINT BY THE NUMBERS

(Ratios based on personnel per 1,000 rural residents)
• 0.97 | Current Active Deputies and Sergeants ratio.
• 1.05 | Current Total Agency ratio (including all command and administration).
• 1.50 | The National Baseline Standard (The absolute lowest Western U.S. average).
• 43 | The number of full-time positions Whatcom County needs to ADD just to meet the bare minimum national standard.
We are operating at a fraction of what a safe community requires.

⚠️ THE REAL CRISES ON OUR STREETS

Our deputies are drowning in high-priority calls while our workforce shrinks:
• The Fentanyl Epidemic: 911 dispatchers logged 386 suspected overdose calls in just the first six months of this year.
• Fatal Crashes: Serious injury and fatal motor vehicle collisions are climbing locally, moving in the wrong direction compared to the rest of the state.
• High Crime Rates: Crime numbers are edging down slightly, but they are dropping from historic, post-pandemic peaks and remain dangerously elevated.

🗣️ TAKE ACTION NOW: EMAIL THE EXECUTIVE & COUNCIL!

When you call 911 in a crisis, help needs to arrive. But we cannot keep absorbing a growing population with a shrinking workforce.

Your voice matters. Please take 60 seconds to copy/paste and email both the Executive and all seven members of the County Council right now. Tell them to reject the executive's proposed budget cuts and prioritize the safety of our neighborhoods.

📩 Send your emails directly to:

• County Executive Office: [email protected] (or [email protected])

• County Council Office: [email protected]

🏛️ Or pack the Chambers on Tuesday nights at 6PM: 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, WA 98225

09/27/2026

We are proud to stand with our brothers and sisters from the Bellingham Police Officers Guild in our endorsement for Ryan Swinburnson, Candidate for Whatcom County Prosecutor. Make sure you get out and vote in November.

A massive shoutout and thank you to Deputy Klix for her unwavering dedication to our Guild, , and the PSEII board! 🙌 Whi...
09/18/2026

A massive shoutout and thank you to Deputy Klix for her unwavering dedication to our Guild, , and the PSEII board! 🙌

While some only talk the talk, Deputy Klix walks the walk. Back in May at Semiahmoo, Whatcom County Sheriff's Office Sheriff Tanksley stood before attendees from all over the state at the Washington Council of Police and Sheriffs (WACOPS) conference, speaking about how valuable the organization is. He explicitly told the room how important it is for law enforcement to be involved, promising that if anyone ever needed anything to just ask, and he would support them.

Unfortunately, actions speak louder than words. When it came time to actually back up that speech at home, Deputy Klix was forced to use personal vacation time just to attend. Adding insult to injury, she was denied 17 hours of training time for three critical, high-value training topics requested for this event: Navigating Labor Rights: Investigations, Discipline & Representation (7 Hours); The Impact of Human and Organizational Factors on Use of Force Investigations (7 Hours); and Beyond the Stigma: Hormonal Health in Public Safety (3 Hours).

Contrast that with our neighbors at the Bellingham Police Department. A huge thank you to Bellingham Police Chief Mertzig for actually supporting WACOPS and fully sponsoring BPD Guild Representative Officer Johnston to attend the exact same event. That is what real leadership and organizational backing look like!

We are incredibly grateful for leaders like Deputy Klix who sacrifice their own personal time to represent us and bring vital training back to our membership. She deserves real support, not just empty promises.

📸 Pictured (L-R): BPD Guild Representative Officer Johnston, Deputy Klix, and Teresa Taylor (Executive Director of ).

09/17/2026

The Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild is proud to announce our official endorsement of Justin Pike for State Representative in the 42nd Legislative District! 🇺🇸👮‍♂️

As one of our own detectives, Justin has spent his entire career on the front lines protecting our community, serving in the National Guard, and working as a local small business owner. He understands firsthand that real leadership means putting people first and politics second. We are proud to support Justin because we know he will bring accountability, common-sense solutions, and a commitment to positive change to Olympia!

Vote Justin Pike

09/17/2026

The Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild is proud to announce our endorsement of Ryan Swinsburnson for Whatcom County Prosecutor! ⚖️🇺🇸

We are excited to support a leader who is truly dedicated to bringing positive change to our community. Ryan believes in strong leadership, accountability, and always putting people first. We look forward to working together for a safer, stronger Whatcom County!

https://www.swinburnsonforprosecutor.com/?fbclid=IwVERFWAUYZLVwZG9mAWZkaWQWUOmB3pgLmxonvSCaxD3dvYEm-N_P5mV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR7q0Qnc6Jzxw3Cov70_I2W2iMD6Iep9v99Pa-9YXwra564vhdmnL4YD6A3tmg_aem_aIIp0JBngOthbpWZ02hByg

09/14/2026

Deputy Matt Herzog EOW 09-13-2001. Gone but not forgotten. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

09/12/2026

Hard to believe it has been 25 years since that terrible day. Never forget all the lives lost and the men and women who have sacrificed since. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

07/25/2026

We had a great time with the community and yes, even the firefighters… I hear they “won” which was surprising as they came to us looking for salt and pepper at the start… 🤔

Special thanks to Clean Cut Futures and all the other sponsors for this great community event!

07/15/2026

July 14th, 2026

Media Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

STATEMENT FROM THE WHATCOM COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFF’S GUILD

BELLINGHAM, WA — The Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild is aware of media coverage and ongoing public speculation into recent disciplinary actions and termination of our personnel. While the affected employees are contractually and legally restricted from discussing a pending matter, the Guild is issuing this statement to provide critical context and ensure our members receive the public defense and due process they are legally owed.

For decades, the members of this Guild have put their lives on the line daily to serve Whatcom County. Our members deserve a workplace governed by consistency, transparency, and basic fairness. The principles of labor law and our collective bargaining agreement require that all internal investigations be completely objective, that rules be applied equally to all personnel regardless of rank, and that discipline never be used as a tool for political insulation.

A complete, objective review of the facts reveals a narrative that differs fundamentally from the initial characterizations put forward by the administration. The evidence demonstrates a profound lack of contractual justification, severe disparate treatment, and a flat denial of basic due process.

The Guild is currently weighing our options to aggressively challenge these administrative actions within our lawful timelines. We are fully confident that when the complete record is presented before the administration or an independent third party, these punitive actions will be overturned.

The Guild stands firmly with our members and their families. We will continue to utilize every legal and contractual mechanism available to ensure the truth is fully documented and that our members’ rights are robustly defended.

We thank the community for their continued support of our frontline deputies and ask for patience as the formal labor resolution process gets underway.

# # #

About the Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild:
The Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild was established in 1996 to represent the law enforcement deputies and sergeants of the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office. The Deputy Sheriff's Guild currently represents about 80 law-enforcement professionals.

Contact:

Whatcom County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild
President Austin Streubel
[email protected]
________________________________________

Address

P. O. Box 1304
Bellingham, WA
98227

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