York County is facing a budget hole that could lead to dozens of layoffs in the coming months.
County commissioners met this week and asked department heads to come up with spending cuts to close a gap of more than $900,000 this year that will begin accumulating when the new state jail consolidation law takes effect later this summer. The commissioners are expected to review proposed cuts next week.
Layoffs could affect from 20 to 40 employees ranging from clerical workers in the county courthouse to sheriff's deputies, County Commissioner Richard Dutremble said.
Dutremble said the cuts represent nearly 18 percent of the non-jail portion of the county budget.
"It's a real blow," Dutremble said of the possible budget cuts. "To me, it would probably be a disaster."
The budget crunch results from the consolidation law, which sets an amount each county must spend to support its jail. Any jail-boarding fees – charges to other counties for taking in their prisoners – must go toward the expense of jailing those prisoners or to a separate account for repairs and equipment replacement.
In the past, York County has used its jail boarding fees – expected to be about $932,000 this fiscal year – to lower the impact of jail-operating costs on the county budget. But state law now mandates the amount that must be spent on the jail, and the boarding fees can no longer be used to offset that expense.
In other words, York County will have to spend the mandated amount – $8.6 million in its case – on the jail, even if it took in $9 million in boarding fees.
County officials hope to get the state to change the funding formula, but they have to prepare in case the law is unchanged before it takes effect.
"We've had conversations with the governor, with the delegation and with the DOC (state Department of Corrections) but they're saying, 'No, that was the intent,' " said Sallie Chandler, the chairwoman of the York County Commission.
Chandler said that if the county could continue using boarding fees to offset the impact of jail costs on county taxpayers, "the county budget would be fine." "It will be pretty hard for the county to function with half its staff gone," she added.
Dutremble noted that most of the services the county provides are required by law. Even if the budget is cut, the county still has to register deeds, for example – but it might take longer if fewer clerks are on hand, Dutremble said.
He also noted that some employees of the District Attorney's Office are already facing unpaid furlough days because of state budget cuts. Any further reductions in county funding, he said, could slow things in that office even more.
And if sheriff's deputies are targeted for cuts, the commissioners could face unhappy voters. The commissioners considered cutting four deputies when they prepared the budget earlier this year, but reversed course after public protests and because a few revenues sources were projected to be higher than originally estimated.
The sheriff's office at the time said that it might eliminate any deputies on the job between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m., when the fewest calls for police assistance are made. But residents said they wanted deputies available around the clock.
Staff Writer Edward D. Murphy can be contacted at 791-6465 or at:
emurphy@pressherald.com
Reader comments
Click here to view or add comments on this story
Were you interviewed for this story? If so, please fill out our accuracy form