Butler County discusses 2011 budget

HAMILTON, Ohio - Butler County is in a similar situation to many other government offices that face a deficit for 2011. The options are to increase revenue somehow or cut spending.

The county commissioners met Thursday to discuss the budget and how to balance it for next year. The county projects a $7 million deficit for 2011, so county commissioners have some tough choices to make.

The commissioners decided not to pursue a proposed increase to the sales tax, so the other option is to cut.  At the meeting, commissioners decided to make a temporary fix to the 2011 budget.  Commissioners approved a one-month budget only for January.  This allows the government to continue operating, and also gives newly elected Commissioner Cindy Carpenter a chance to be a part of the permanent budget discussion once she takes office in January. She replaces outgoing Commissioner Greg Jolivette.

For the county, the biggest issue in the past three years has been a decline in revenue. From 2008 until the present, the county has seen a decrease in revenue of more than $18 million or 19 percent. There are decreases across the board in everything from property taxes, to investment income, to fees.

Director of the county's Office of Management and Budget, Pete Landrum, presented information for the commissioners' review that included figures for revenue and expenditures.  He also included some facts about the state of the economy.  He reported that government entities are the last to feel a recession and the last to see a recovery.  He also projected that the top ten county revenues will remain flat for the short term future.

Commissioner Charles Furmon commented that the detail of the budget is the most he has seen during his entire time serving the county.  He said all of the facts and numbers are available on the county website for anyone to see.  Today's presentation is included on the county website now.  Click here to link to the presentation.  He added that the commission still faces tough decisions with cuts.  Furmon said, "When you only have so much money coming in, you only have so much to spend.  Fortunately for us, the other office holders have been very cooperative and that's made all of the difference in the world as far as we're concerned and it's helped tremendously."

Before the economy started to suffer, Butler County was one of the fastest growing counties. It's budget expenditures grew at a rapid pace as revenue grew. The county took on a great deal of debt to fund numerous projects including a fiber optics system, road improvements, and the new jail among other projects. The county debt now stands at about $91 million. With so much debt, and a projected deficit for next year, the county is at risk of getting a downgrade in its credit rating.

The commission is expected to approve the final 2011 budget by the end of January.