The battle over the shrinking Hamilton County budget may get even more intense this week, with two major public safety departments saying they can't take anymore budget cutting.
Later Monday morning, it's expected that the three Hamilton County commissioners will begin to wrestle with the more stark budget realities they have been handed.
The coroner's office says it can't take any more budget cutting, or it may have to close down its important forensics lab.
The county's common pleas and municipal courts say they won't put up with any more cuts. Hamilton County Courts Administrator Michael Walton says his department has already cut 100 of 600 jobs through attrition, and furloughs used elsewhere won't generate the other $5 million in cuts the commissioners requesting for next year.
Walton says if the commissioners order further cuts, the courts simply won't open.
In addition, over $700,000 in new cuts are planned at the coroner's office for 2010, and that could force commissioners to find as much as $6 million in new budget cuts from other county departments.
Both Hamilton County Coroner O'dell Owens and Court Administrator Walton have suggested that Hamilton County might have to consider raising the sales taxes to prevent deeper budget cuts. But several commissioners have said they don't want to increase taxes with the local economy struggling to recover from a recession.
You can bet this will be a top issue of discussion when the County Commissioners hold their regular Monday morning meeting at 9:30 a.m.
We'll have it covered for you, with updates on 9News and further stories here at wcpo.com.
