The week between Christmas and New Year's was a busy one for Athens County officials - and it's not because they were eating cookies or unwrapping presents.
In a move that might force some departments to resort to layoffs and reduced hours for employees, the 2011 county budget, approved last Tuesday, is $12.5 million - about $300,000 less than last year.
County departments had previously submitted a budget request totaling $13.2 million, which was significantly higher than revenue projections and forced the County Commissioners to make about $700,000 in cuts.
The budget commission gave us a revenue projection well below what the departments had asked for
said County Commissioner Lenny Eliason.
Unlike previous years, the 2011 budget does not include a contingency fund for emergency expenditures.
Athens County Department of Job and Family Services was dealt a $100,000 budget cut, but spokesman Nick Claussen said he isn't sure what the cut will mean for the department because much of its $110 million budget hinges on state and federal grants.
We really don't know what it means yet Claussen said.
Other departments that will absorb cuts include the County Planner's office, the Athens County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Ohio State University Extension office.
The Athens County Prosecutor's Office will receive the same amount as last year- $38,948 - for its victim assistance program, but that's about $12,000 less than it had requested this year.
County officials said the departments have indicated the cuts are manageable, but caution that the currently balanced budget still is not set-in-stone.
Athens County Auditor Jill Thompson projects a 75 percent decrease in local funding from the state. The actual amount of local funding won't be finalized until Gov.-elect John Kasich proposes his state budget in March.
We won't really know much more until March Eliason said.
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Wesley Lowery
