By ALISHA WYMAN

The Union Democrat

Deputy Carl Benson spends much of his workday in a car while on patrol for the Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office.

Because he commutes to work from Oakdale, the fringes of his 10-hour days are also spent on the road.

Benson is in good company. Nearly half of Tuolumne and Calaveras county patrol deputies commute to work. Nine out of 20 deputies in Tuolumne County and 15 out of 32 deputies in Calaveras County live out of county.

The deputies' drives range from a half hour to an hour-and-a-half, and can be hard on them, said Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office spokesman Dan Bressler.

The office has been lucky, but officials worry about the increased risk of accidents, especially if deputies are too tired to drive after long days and sometimes graveyard shifts.

There is a room at the sheriff's office where deputies can sleep if they are too tired to drive home after a shift.

With rising gas prices, commuting can also be hard financially.

"We don't compare well with salaries in the Valley," he said. "When you add the gas money they're paying to commute, it makes it difficult."

"That's like taking a pay cut," added Calaveras County Sheriff's spokesman Dave Seawell.

With an economic slowdown spreading across the country, factors like commutes add to the pinch that all residents have felt, Tuolumne County Sheriff Jim Mele said.

"The Sheriff's Office is not immune to feeling the effects of the economy by any means," he said.

The reasons why deputies live in the Valley vary, but housing costs, which are less expensive in the Valley, often play a role, officials say.

An index of housing costs ranks Sonora's housing costs at 139, with 100 being average. The same site, bestplaces.com, puts Modesto and Stockton at 102.

Benson would like to move to Tuolumne County, but he owns a house in San Joaquin County.

"I know if I sold it right now, I'd lose money," he said.

Instead, he is living with his girlfriend in Oakdale to cut costs and his commute. He would like to rent out his house to bring in income that could help him rent in Tuolumne County.

The commute is not as bad as those he has done in the past, but it adds up to about five hours in the car each week, Benson said.

The Sonora Police Department's roster doesn't face the same commute challenges. Of their 10 patrol officers and two sergeants, only one commutes, Lt. Mark Stinson said.

The one who commutes owned a house in Murphys before he took the job, Stinson said.

Stinson was surprised to hear there was such a difference between the police department and sheriff's department and is unsure of the cause, he said.

Some of the deputies' families could have family ties in the Valley, he said.

Rent may be expensive in some places in Tuolumne County, such as Phoenix Lake, but it is fairly reasonable in the city, Stinson. He pays $1,000 a month.

The city offers its employees a home loan program, where they receive a special interest rate and part of a home loan is forgiven after a certain number of years with the department.

The department pays starting officers $24.15 an hour.

Deputy sheriff's who have completed the academy make a base salary of $21.08 per hour and starting jail deputies make $18.24 an hour after the academy in Tuolumne County. Calaveras County figures weren't available.

Though financial reasons likely play a role for many, some may want to live closer to the resources of a big city or may prefer to live in a different location than they work, Seawell said.

Deputies' wives also may have jobs in the Valley, Mele said.

"Jobs are a little easier to come by down in that area," he said.

Contact Alisha Wyman at awyman@uniondemocrat.com or 588-4526.