Topic: County Budget

On Monday, May 18th at 6pm, residents can let commissioners know what they think of the proposals and where they believe priorities should lie during a public hearing. This meeting will be held at the Lee County Government Center on Hillcrest Drive off Carthage Street.

At a glace, the budget looks like this;

• $59.8 million, a 10 percent reduction from $66.5 million during the 2008-09 fiscal year.



• 26 jobs would be cut under the proposal. Most would be through vacancies and retirements, while nine others would be jobs that were occupied.



• Commissioners must approve a budget before the next fiscal year starts July 1.

A full version of the current proposal can be viewed here.

In regards to Public Safety, which includes the Lee County Sheriff and jail operations, as well as inspections, juvenile detention and emergency services, the proposed budget is:

• The sheriff's office budget is $3.8 million, or almost 7 percent less than the current year budget. The jail budget is about $2 million, or about 4 percent less.



• Jobs cut: 1



• Possible impact: Lee County Sheriff Tracy Carter said he was able to realize significant reductions in the 2009-10 budgets for the sheriff's office and the county jail without having to cut any personnel. (The only job cut comes from a decision earlier this year to eliminate the emergency services director position. Officials are considering merging those duties with the fire marshal.)



• In the jail and sheriff's budgets, Carter said his staff was able to make reductions by trimming capital expenditures, such as new vehicles, equipment, computer upgrades, office supplies and funding for part-time positions. "We wanted to be as conservative as we could this year, being that the county is in the situation they're in with the budget," Carter said.