County Plan Eliminates Jobs Of 138 Employees

By MIKE SALINERO and ANTHONY McCARTNEY The Tampa Tribune

Published: Jul 24, 2007

TAMPA - Libraries will open later, fire stations won't be built and up to 138 Hillsborough County workers will lose their jobs if county commissioners approve a draft budget unveiled Monday.

County officials said the cuts are a direct result of a property tax rollback approved by state lawmakers this year and a slowdown in the housing market.

In all, 480 positions are targeted for elimination, although most are either vacant or filled by part-time or temporary workers.

The trims were not as drastic as once feared; Hillsborough officials planned to slash as much as $217 million at one point.

County Administrator Pat Bean said she eliminated roughly $56 million from next year's budget, most of it property taxes the county had planned to spend but couldn't after lawmakers approved a tax cut plan.

That plan called for Hillsborough to roll back spending to this year's level and make an additional five percent cut of $40 million. The county was able to recoup some money from new construction over the past year, resulting in a net loss of only about $12 million in property tax dollars.

With the planned cuts, the county's budget will drop for the first time in recent years, from $3.82 billion last year to $3.68 next year.

Bean said the cuts will have an impact. She said residents have clamored for more parks and services.

"I believe people will feel it," she said.

Hillsborough County's layoff projections come nearly a month after Tampa announced it would eliminate the jobs of 121 employees to save roughly $15 million.

The budget proposal will be debated by county commissioners during two workshops later this week. Many of the reductions will be familiar to the board as they closely match a list of potential cuts Bean released June 1.

Her budget continues a moratorium on building new fire stations and libraries and a hiring freeze enacted this year. Workers at numerous county parks will be cut. Plans to expand the county's Head Start program, already one of the largest in the state, would be canceled, saving $1 million.

Fire Department Loses 33 Jobs

Hillsborough County Fire Rescue will lose 33 positions, including 21 firefighters and medics the county planned to hire for a station in Central Brandon. Three of the county's 59 code enforcement officers also are expected to lose their jobs.

Bean said county officials were working to identify which workers will lose their jobs. Some employees could be reassigned and some may retire, but she said the vast majority would be laid off.

The budget also slashes payouts to dozens of nonprofit agencies throughout the county, although those that provide essential community services will remain untouched, Bean said. The cuts vary, with Lowry Park Zoo and the Museum of Science & Industry losing only portions of their county stipend. Fifteen agencies, including the Tampa Bay Academy of Hope and two cable access channels, are expected to lose county support completely.

Despite the cutbacks, the county's operating expenses are expected to increase from $880 million to $920 million. The county's remaining 5,700 employees are expected to receive an average 3.5 percent raise next year.

The $37 million budget for the county's Planning and Growth Management Department will be cut by nearly $10 million, the result of a slowdown in the housing market, Budget Director Eric Johnson said.

The projections don't take into account money the county may lose if voters approve a homestead super-exemption during January's election. If that is approved, Bean warned Monday, far deeper cuts will be needed to make up for the lost money.

Officials anticipate a further decline in property tax revenue in 2009, and built a $30 million buffer into next year's budget in case January's referendum passes, Johnson said.

Commissioners who had seen the budget late Monday praised Bean for enacting cuts across the board.

"Now our work begins," said Commissioner Rose Ferlita. She said she planned to scrutinize Bean's proposals and ask her to justify some of the cuts.

Commission Chairman Jim Norman, however, warned against too much tinkering.

If a commissioner planned to change Bean's budget, "you've got to cut deeper into services," he warned.

Norman said he has already been lobbied by some nonprofit and county agencies, hoping for a reprieve from the cuts. He said he has told them no, a word he expected to be using a lot in the coming week.

"We're going to have to turn away a lot of people," Norman said.

Bean Calls Cuts 'Slowdown'

In her message to commissioners, Bean called next year's proposed budget a spending "slowdown."

For libraries, parks and Fire Rescue, it is.

The county won't build 11 planned fire stations, and plans for seven parks and six libraries have already been halted.

Joe Robinson, a Sulphur Springs activist who has pushed for years to get a library in the area, said the cutbacks are a bitter disappointment.

"We fought hard for that library," Robinson said. "This is an area that has 3,000-plus children and a library in this area would go a long way toward giving them a step up in getting into the 21st century."

The library system also is eliminating 92 part-time positions, mostly high school students who shelve books. Joe Stines, director of libraries, said the libraries will start opening an hour later at 10 a.m. so full-time library workers can use the extra hour for stocking the bookshelves.

The parks department plans to eliminate arts and crafts programs at its recreation centers, saving about $215,000 next year. The county plans to cut staffing at several parks, including ones in Apollo Beach, Carrollwood and the Cross Creek and Fishhawk areas.

Bean is seeking a 10 percent cut in the budget of the Environmental Protection Commission, although she said she wasn't assuming that a wetlands monitoring program that commissioners signaled they want to eliminate would be part of those cuts.

The Public Works department also will lose 18 workers and will scale back street sweeping from three to two times a year. Twelve of the jobs are employees whose duties include monitoring 31 stormwater pumping stations.

Public Works Director Bob Gordon said the reductions will leave only two employees to monitor the stormwater pumps with no backup.

"We're going to have to figure out some way to get them some backup," Gordon said. "Two guys can't cover them all if you start having massive problems with electrical failure. The pumps have to be working when the water comes up."

Bean said she hoped voters would consider the effect of the cuts when voting in January on whether to roll back property taxes further.

If voters approve the larger homestead exemption, the county estimates it could lose another $101.5 million in fiscal year 2009.

Johnson said the county could again rely on the cuts list Bean released in June. Those cuts included removing ambulances from certain areas and even deeper cuts to code enforcement, parks and library programs.

Reporter Mike Salinero can be reached at (813) 259-8303 or msalinero@tampatrib.com. Reporter Anthony McCartney can be reached at (813) 259-7616 or amccartney@ tampatrib.com.

BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS

ELIMINATED: 480 positions, with up to 138 people being laid off

CANCELED: Construction of fire stations, libraries, parks; expansion of Head Start

CUT: One hour of library time per day, street sweeping and stormwater monitoring

WHAT'S NEXT: Commissioners have scheduled budget workshops for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday at County Center in Tampa. The meetings will be televised on Channel 22.