Calling for a halt to county spending, a Seward town councilman urged county supervisors to give taxpayers relief on Friday.
Deb Hagadorn, backed by about 20 Seward residents, told supervisors that although times are bad now, “2010 will be the worst yet” if county spending continues as is.
Sympathetic to Ms. Hagadorn, supervisors said later that they’ve already implemented some spending cuts, are looking at mid-year measures and other reductions in the future.
Ms. Hagadorn spoke during the Board of Supervisors’ privilege of the floor session at their monthly meeting, held Friday under a tent at the Landis Arboretum in Esperance.
“This county is in dire straits,” said Ms. Hagadorn, explaining that Seward residents asked her to speak. “People cannot take any more.
“As the county Board of Supervisors, it’s your responsibility to hold the line on spending.”
Many people haven’t––or can’t––pay their 2009 taxes, and with the 2010 budget work coming up, the economic landscape is bleak, she said.
Asking supervisors to treat public money as though it were their own, Ms. Hagadorn said that “you have to run government like you run your household.”
She pointed to vacant storefronts and struggling farms as evidence of the tough times.
“We’re in a position where we have to save ourselves from ourselves,” Ms. Hagadorn said. “I’m not willing to lose one more person to this economic recession.”
Responding later, board Chairman Earl Van Wormer said officials haven’t done a good job informing the public about cuts already made and those being considered.
The hiring moratorium started last month is due to end in August, but Mr. Van Wormer said it may continue to the end of the year.
The moratorium, he added, is difficult because state mandates occasional additional employees––an extra jail guard if there are more prisoners or another social case worker if there are too many clients, for example.
Salaries are one of the county’s biggest expenses. In light of that, there may be no pay raises for anyone next year, he said.
“I don’t think you’re going to see anyone jumping out there for a pay raise next year,” Mr. Van Wormer said.
Addressing Ms. Hagadorn, Fulton Supervisor Phil Skowfoe said he agreed with her, adding that “We are trying.”
One savings is that the county and three towns––Seward, Jefferson and Richmondville––are sharing highway services.
Mr. Van Wormer also detailed other cost-savings, either in effect or being considered:
––Employee unions gave supervisors 30 ideas to save, and officials are looking at those.
––The county is negotiating lower electric costs and is also looking to partner with towns and villages for lower costs.
––Officials are expecting to join with the Cobleskill-Richmondville School District and other districts to buy large quantities of gas and diesel fuel to lower costs.
Other spending cuts are in the works, according to Alicia Terry, who is co-budget officer with Paul Brady.
She and Mr. Brady asked county department heads to propose mid-year cuts of varying amounts in their budgets and detail what the effects would be.
They’ll take the department heads’ suggestions to the supervisors’ Finance Committee next month.
Also, Ms. Terry said, she and Mr. Brady will start 2010 budget work two or three weeks earlier than usual because they’re new to the job, having taken over from Treasurer Bill Cherry earlier this year.
Ms. Terry heard Ms. Hagadorn’s presentation, and, like the supervisors, she was sympathetic.
“Deb was voicing thoughts that a lot of people have these days,” Ms. Terry said. “With the economy, it’s more of a topic, more of a concern.”