Programs won’t be cut despite tight budget

At Tuesday’s County Commission meeting, commissioners agreed not to cut programs, despite some budget shortfalls.

County Manager Bruce Shell said revenue is down for the county by about $5 million mostly due to the fact that inspection and building permit revenues are down thanks to a slowing housing market.

Commissioners gave a clear message at their Tuesday meeting; there will be no tax increase to make up for lost revenue.

Snell said, “Our snapshot at this point appears that we are going to be fine. Our year ends June 30th. We’ll look at that and as we prepare our budget for next year, we want to go in to that in a positive way.”

To cut spending, the county will continue with its hiring freeze and will cutback on employee travel. They will also be putting off buying new vehicles and new technology.