County on Hunt for More Cash

The board's main concern was how to handle the likely multi-million dollar budget shortfall the state is expected to saddle the county with. Whether the county will actually experience the shortfall is dependent on the state budget, to be determined in the next month.

Two solutions arose during the course of discussion: the implementation of a hiring freeze on county personnel vacancies and the suspension of various projects that fall under Orange County's Capital Investment Plan.

The CIP includes several "pay-as-you-go" projects that are financed by the county's sales tax, the dedicated two-thirds of a cent property tax, other dedicated property taxes and transfers from completed or obsolete projects.

It is these pay-as-you-go projects that face the threat of postponement or total abandonment. In most cases, the funds have been approved by the board but the projects have not yet been initiated. The allotted funds remain untouched in different county accounts.

The CIP projects most likely to be deferred or canceled include the implementation of handicapped accessibility items that are required by the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Lands Legacy program that enables the county to purchase available land, renovation of the government services annex and recreation and parks improvements.

If the board votes to delay any of these projects, it effectively allows the county to borrow funds that were initially designated for the projects and put them toward more pressing needs.

If all 20 projects that will be considered for deferral are indeed deferred, the county could have access to an estimated $2 million for the coming fiscal year.

Estimated savings from the implementation of a hiring freeze range from $420,00 for a three-month freeze to $1.4 million for a 12-month freeze.

The freeze would apply to positions vacant as of July 1 and those that would become vacant during the 2002-03 fiscal year.

While the hiring freeze would generate significant cost savings for the county, the commissioners were hesitant to approve the proposal without further information regarding the negative effects of the freeze. Such effects may include slower service, tighter control of temporary employment and overtime and adverse affects on morale and turnover deriving from the increased stress and workloads that would occur.

As the budget stands now, $13.3 million will be allotted to the school system, $3 million to parks, recreation and open space needs, $1.3 million to affordable housing efforts and $500,000 to the county senior centers.

If the commissioners find that the county will not have the money to meet these allotments, then the residents of Orange County will certainly face a tax increase, a county employee hiring freeze, the deferment of CIP programs, the cancellation of CIP programs or any combination of the above.

"Our primary focus here should be to fiscally make room for those considerations we will definitely face and those that might be unforeseen. For the others, we've got to consider some serious cuts," Commissioner Alice Gordon said.

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