Peshtigo Times Wisconsin Community Newspaper:
"Oconto County To Cut $1 Million From Payroll
“Our General Fund is down from $9 million to $6 million in less than two years,” Administrative Coordinator Kevin Hamann warned Oconto County Board at their meeting Thursday, Jan. 20. Acting on his advice, the board directed their Personnel & Wages Committee to create a plan to eliminate enough county positions to save $1,083,079 in county tax dollars in 2012.
“It doesn’t mean we’re going to do it,” Hamann said, “but they have to start looking now.”
With the generally poor economy, property values have not risen and property tax collections have not increased in the last several years. The county has been drawing from the General Fund to balance their budget, the enabling resolution said, to the tune of $1,083,079 taken from various fund balances in the adopted 2011 budget, $725,000 of fund balances in 2010, and had a $615,567 net decrease in the general fund according to the 2009 audit.
“We cannot continue to do that without jeopardizing the financial condition of the county,” Hamann declared.
“We have now come down to the point where we may have to eliminate positions to make the budget work"
When there's no money left, what's next? Will the union employees fight for their pay or work with Oconto County to save as many jobs as they can. The line in the sand is drawn, who will cross it? Should be interesting to see how Oconto County and all other municipalities in Wisconsin face budget shortfalls in the future and who will give in.
Damn'd if it will be the tax payers of Wisconsin with higher taxes!
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