Supervisor to County Departments: "We Are Not Going to Bail You Out"

Gas prices have taken their toll on Linn County.

Heads of various Linn County departments struggling with an unexpected rise in fuel cost were told that they had to fill their budget gaps without financial aid from Linn County.

The decision came after a meeting last week where Linn County Conservation Director Dan Biechler said he went $5,500 over his $96,000 budget. He expects to spend an additional $43,000 on fuel before the end of June.

"We have told every department that you have to find savings in your budget," said Linn County Supervisor Brent Oleson. "We are not going to bail you out."

For some departments, finding savings might be difficult.

In an interview with Marion Patch, Biechler said he's not quite sure how to absorb the additional cost. He said the next step for the conservation department is to take another look at the budget projection and find places to cut.

"We may have to delay some projects," he said. "We may have to underspend on maintenance."

Still, according to Linn County Supervisor Ben Rogers, most departments dealing with a budget shortfall have found room to spare.

For example, according to Rogers, the Linn County Secondary Roads Department underestimated the cost of fuel, but due to the light winter didn't spend as much plowing the streets.

"There is always a place in the budget to find some economy," he said.

But what about next year?

Rogers said the good news is that the budget for the next fiscal year will include an increase in gas prices.

He can't say whether or not it will have to be adjusted, but he said the county government learned their lesson in how to cope with fluctuating gas prices.

"All it has really done is caused us to be more vigilant in our fuel consumption and our budget," he said.