City of Solvang to Break Up 40-Year Partnership with Sheriff’s Office?

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This article was underwritten in part by the Mickey Flacks Journalism Fund for Social Justice, a proud, innovative supporter of local news. To make a contribution go to sbcan.org/journalism_fund.

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Solvang is pursuing a policing change. On May 26, the city’s council voted to start negotiations with the Lompoc Police Department for law enforcement services. The current policing contract with Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, county staff said, has grown increasingly expensive in the past decade, rising by 107 percent in the past decade. 

“This is strictly a value awareness [with] the idea being that we don’t believe we’re getting what we’re paying for,” Solvang City Manager Randy Murphy said. 

Since Solvang’s incorporation as a city in 1985, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has provided law enforcement officers to the city for a price, which it pays from its discretionary funds. In the past decade, that contract cost has increased from $1.56 million in fiscal year 2015/2016 ($2.19 million when adjusting for inflation) to an estimated $3.4 million for fiscal year 2026/2027. That new figure is offset by sales tax funding but is still the city’s largest discretionary fund expenditure, Assistant City Manager Olivia Uribe Mutal said, costing the city $1.6 million.  

For that cost, the Sheriff’s Office provides one patrol car posted in Solvang 24/7. Uribe Mutal said that pencils out to 5.5 full-time deputies (an average that also factors in training, vacation, and sick day pay). Deputies are contracted to provide basic services, like traffic enforcement and criminal investigations, but do not provide any “add-on” service, such as a community resource deputy or dedicated detective. 

Uribe Mutal said Solvang has concerns on the policing services it receives: a lack of traffic enforcement and city code enforcement, limited event coverage, and inconsistently provided police activity stats. Uribe Mutal said that the Sheriff’s Office is limited in its accountability to city leadership. 

In 2022, Solvang, Buellton, Goleta, and Carpinteria — all cities serviced by the Sheriff’s Office — entered legal mediation with the Sheriff’s Office over their contracts. The mediation came after the Sheriff’s Office’s proposed contracts increased by 44 percent over two years. 

The Lompoc Police Department has 51 sworn officers for its community of 44,000. The department has grown in recent years, after significant depletion in the late 2010s and early 2020s. In a 2021 Santa Barbara County Grand Jury report, the grand jury said the City of Lompoc’s budget limitation had “handicapped” its police force, and from 2015 to 2022, the force had lost a third of its officers and contended with equipment failures.

In 2024, the department was nearly fully staffed, with 47 sworn personnel. It currently has a budget of $18 million per year. 

Lompoc Chief of Police Kevin Martin attended the city council meeting. He said his goal for the community would be to staff a lieutenant in Solvang to work with the city and attend council meetings when Martin could not. 

Chief Martin said hiring staff for Solvang would be the principal challenge with providing services, but he said he was confident he could hire the necessary officers. 

Solvang City Councilmember Mark Infanti asked about the startup price for the change. City Manager Murphy said he estimated the cost of the switch to sit at $500,000, for equipment and vehicle purchases and to hire and train officers. 

Murphy and Assistant City Manager Uribe Mutal said that the May 26 vote was to continue the conversation, not make a final decision regarding policing. Uribe Mutal said that it was seeking three facts from the Lompoc Police Department: an “apples to apples” comparison of cost and services, a minimum staffing amount that Lompoc could provide, and what level of service it would receive for the $3.4 million the Sheriff’s Office is charging. 

At the meeting, Uribe Mutal said the nearby City of Buellton was also considering a switch. Buellton City Manager Scott Wolfe said the city has not yet taken the decision to the council, as it is still gathering information on law enforcement contract options. 

Solvang’s contract with the Sheriff’s Office expires on June 30, 2027. If Solvang reaches an agreement with Lompoc, Lompoc police would take over providing law enforcement for Solvang the following day. If the city and department cannot reach an agreement, Solvang has the opportunity to implement a one-year extension with the Sheriff’s Office. The city’s existing contract involves three one-year extensions. 

A representative from Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office did not attend the meeting. In a statement to the Independent, the sheriff’s office said the following: 

Since 1985 when the City incorporated, the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office has provided exemplary service to the City of Solvang. 

As the County’s largest full-service public safety agency, we are able to provide immediate access to specialized investigative units, mental health co-response, air support, tactical teams, and forensic services that smaller standalone agencies simply cannot replicate independently. The Sheriff’s Office provides a Lieutenant who acts as a Chief of Police who engages in regular communication with the City Manager and attends City Council meetings. 

Sheriff Bill Brown stated, “The relationship between the Sheriff’s Office and the City of Solvang has been built over many years through collaboration, trust, and a shared commitment to excellence in public safety. We remain committed to productive conversations that prioritize the needs of the community.”