Golden – Jefferson County officials say it’s time to put the budget on an immediate diet and to change for the foreseeable future how the county devours dollars.
“Our problem is not one year,” said Commissioner Kathy Hartman. “We need to get our basic expenses down, and we’re going to be making some tough choices.”
The aim is to cut $12 million to $15 million out of the $174 million general fund, which pays nonearmarked expenses, in 2008 and find more ways to change how the county does business.
New sources of money are being sought, including eyeing whether to raise a temporarily reduced mill levy by 1 mill – which can be done without voter approval – and asking voters as early as November to increase the Law Enforcement Authority tax to cover law-enforcement costs.
At the same time, cuts in staff, benefits, pay and programs are being considered.
“We’re looking at what’s mandated and what’s not and assessing cost-effectiveness,” said Commissioner Kevin McCasky, noting demands are looming for costly jail and courtroom space.
County officials, especially Sheriff Ted Mink, want to keep compensation for county jobs competitive to help with recruitment and retention.
“We’ve lost some very, very talented people to Denver and Aurora,” said Mink, whose budget consumes about half of the general fund.
District Attorney Scott Storey is concerned about having enough staff to support six judges that will be appointed in three years and continuing programs that have shown value.
“We owe it to the taxpayers to be as efficient as we can, but we also owe it to the taxpayers to give them some bang for their buck,” Storey said. “I don’t want to sacrifice service to save a buck.”
For three years, the county has drained once-healthy reserves to bolster the bottom line. Now, expenses have risen as revenues have flattened, particularly property tax that contributes 60 percent of the county’s budget.
County officials have set up internal and external committees to gather insights and ideas.
A citizen budget-review panel appointed by the commissioners is digging through expense and review sheets before it comes up with recommendations in late March.
“The money’s not there. There will be cuts,” panel member and businessman Greg Stevinson said.
The county is well-run and there isn’t much fat, Stevinson said, noting some county benefits “may be a little generous and need to be brought back in line.”
Staff writer Ann Schrader can be reached at 303-278-3217 or aschrader@denverpost.com.
