By Matt Snyder
MERCER COUNTY — As the county�s 2009 budget deteriorates because of stock market losses and cuts in expected state funding, commissioners met with county employees Monday to talk solutions.
The problem is a widening $800,000 budget gap that commissioners are fighting to narrow, said Commissioner John Lechner. This year�s budget had been balanced with a $1.4 million infusion from the county�s fund balance.
Without a tax increase or cost-cutting, the deficit will balloon to $2.2 million. That�s due to about $400,000 being cut from Children and Youth Services money the state normally provides, and the county will have to make up.
The rest is money the county will have to contribute to pensions because of lower yields on investments during the recession.
Commissioners met with union representatives, then elected officials and finally with department heads looking for ways to save money. Lechner said their response was as receptive as could be hoped for.
Lechner said one way to cut costs will be to reduce some work hours without laying off employees. That, he said, will keep the courthouse running at a time when its services are needed more than ever and keep money in the employees� paychecks.
That alone won�t close the budget gap, he said, but it will be a first step.
�We are doing everything in our power to avoid a tax increase,� Lechner said. Commissioners raised property taxes 2 mills this year to bury the long-standing Woodland Place issue.
But commissioners have said they will do what they must to keep the county afloat, including raising taxes if necessary.
