One of King County’s highest-ranking law enforcement officers will visit Vashon on Tuesday to discuss the financial shortfalls his agency is facing.

We don’t know exactly what Chief Dep. Steve Strachan, second in command at the King County Sheriff’s Office, will say when he attends the Vashon-Maury Island Community Council meeting next week, but we know what the topic will likely be: Fewer deputies patrolling the Island.

When it comes to law enforcement, Vashon has long been spared from the cuts the rest of unincorporated King County is experiencing by virtue of our ferry dependency. It’s not safe for a deputy to work alone; thus, while other parts of the county were forced to share, we continued to have two on at any given time.

But in this time of shrinking government services, those days of two deputies — on duty on the Island, 24/7 — may be over. And if the scenario painted by a couple of deputies comes to pass, we may see very little coverage in the evening and nighttime hours on the Island in the foreseeable future.

Islanders should turn out for this meeting and let Strachan know what a lack of nighttime patrols could mean on Vashon: Crimes of opportunity, such as break-ins at small retail shops; drunken driving, with no ramifications; more illegal drug use.

The police presence already feels quite low on this Island. Were it to get even lower, we think the Island’s small yet constant criminal presence will likely grow worse.

At the same time, it also seems important that we understand why this is happening.

King County is not trying to stick it to Vashon. Rather, the sheriff’s office, like every other branch of county and state government, is suffering from budget cuts — due to both the recession and voters’ unwillingness to pay more in taxes. Consider the soda tax: Just two years ago, we refused to continue a tax on soda and candy because we didn’t want to pay a few more cents for these items despite the fact that it would enable the county to continue needed services.

These trends have taken a toll. And despite County Executive Dow Constantine’s recent success at streamlining government, the county continues to face painful cuts.

It’s important that Islanders advocate for themselves. We need to make sure that our unique situation — rural, isolated and ferry-dependent — is not forgotten in the halls of power over town.

But we hope that we’ll do so with decorum, a tone of civility and an understanding of the bigger picture. In government, as in so many things, you get what you pay for, and these days, voters don’t want to pay for much. Fewer deputies on the streets is just one of the many casualties.

Chief Dep. Steve Strachan will give a presentation and answer written questions related to the staffing of deputies on the Island at the VMICC meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday at McMurray Middle School.