The 4-3 vote followed nearly an hour of testimony from local towing company officials who said the move would harm small businesses and lead to poor service for people whose vehicles are towed. And it followed two failed efforts by council Democrats to postpone a vote.

At issue was the Sheriff’s Department plan to scrap a rotation of more than 30 companies that currently respond when deputies need a vehicle towed. Instead, the department plans to award the contract to one company – Gene’s Towing – and six subcontractors.

Department officials say the move will be more efficient. They also say a similar system works well in Tacoma. Companies that would lose county business say it will cost local jobs and degrade service.

Bill Sullivan of Liberty Towing told the council that a handful of companies can’t cover as much ground as the 34 that currently respond to calls. “It’s not going to work,” he said.

Michael Myers of Gene’s Towing assured the council that he and his subcontractors around the county will provide better service.

“Our record speaks for itself,” Myers said.

A dispute over the Sheriff’s Department plans has festered for months. Some companies have accused Myers – who submitted the only bid for the towing contract – of conspiring to eliminate competition. Myers and the Sheriff’s Department say the other companies tried to bully the department during contract negotiations.

The ordinance adopted Tuesday addressed none of those issues. Instead, it snipped the strings the council placed on the Sheriff’s Department towing budget last fall.

The fall budget measure required the department to establish a task force to re-examine the towing contract. The task force met in January and recommended the single-contractor plan.

A council majority agreed that the department had complied with the budget directive. Councilman Dick Muri, R-Steilacoom, said it wasn’t the council’s place to negotiate contracts for the Sheriff’s Department.

Council Democrats Tim Farrell, Barbara Gelman and Calvin Goings twice proposed postponing the ordinance to give the parties more time to negotiate. Their motions failed. However, the council did ask the Sheriff’s Department to report on the county’s towing needs next year.

Sheriff Paul Pastor told the council he would continue to work for “the interests of the county as a whole.”

After the vote, the sheriff said he had no timetable for awarding the towing contract. And he wouldn’t rule out reissuing a request for proposals.

“We will consider it fairly and openly,” Pastor said.

David Wickert: 253-274-7341