County aims to trim $2 million

Another year, another shortfall.

County commissioners said Tuesday they will ask department leaders to help trim as much as $2 million from the county’s 2007 general fund budget in an effort to reconcile county costs with revenue.

Unlike in recent years, commissioners say they hope to stop spending more than they collect in taxes – at least for ongoing expenses such as salaries and benefits.

“If we don’t do that now, it’s going to get more painful in the future,” Commissioner Mark Richard said.

County leaders said such cuts likely would result in staff reductions. At a budget meeting Monday, commissioners suggested that would happen through attrition. In an interview afterward, Commissioner Todd Mielke said he couldn’t rule out layoffs.

In 2007, the county expects to bring in $138.5 million for its general fund, which pays for courts, the Sheriff’s Office, parks and other programs. But to maintain services and employees at this year’s levels, the county needs $140.5 million.

While commissioners agreed that reductions are necessary, they varied on particulars.

Richard said he’s not inclined to ask for across-the-board cuts. Mielke said that while it would be best to examine each budget separately, even services seen as the highest priority – such as criminal justice – are likely to have expenses that should be trimmed.

In five of the past six years, county leaders have depended on reserves built during the boom years of the late 1990s to balance their budget. The fund reached a high of $29 million in 2000.

At the end of this year, the county expects to have $16.5 million in reserves. However, commissioners have vowed not to touch $13.8 million of it so they can maintain a rainy-day fund to keep a quality bond rating and for emergencies.

Commissioners said they will consider using more than $1 million of those reserves for new budget items. County departments have submitted requests for $10 million in new spending, including more employees, parks, a new roof for the county jail and furniture.

“My financial sense is that you don’t typically use one-time money for ongoing programs,” Mielke said, adding that he leans strongly against using the reserve to hire new employees.

Commissioner Phil Harris said he would not rule out using the reserves for new positions if it were determined there was a threat to public safety.

“I don’t think we’re in real tough times yet. We just have to be frugal,” Harris said. “I’m not willing to say absolutely not on anything because I haven’t seen the whole picture yet.”