Sullivan waiting
on state budget

By DAVID HULSE

MONTICELLO, NY — Sullivan County officials are waiting for Governor Pataki’s other shoe to drop.

In his State of the State address last week Pataki forecast across-the-board cuts in state expenditures in his new budget, sparing only public safety funding.

“We won’t have any idea of the specifics until his budget is released,” said county Finance Commissioner Richard LaCondre.

But Legislative Chair Leni Binder (R-7) was preparing the public for state cuts in her remarks at the panel’s reorganization meeting. When Binder spoke of tough times on the horizon, she was talking about the state.

“We’re anticipating state budget cuts of 10 percent in all divisions in 2004. We’re in a time of economic and population growth, a time when your need for services increase and their giving us less to do more,” Binder said.

Sullivan anticipates about $20 million in direct funding from the state in 2003.

If state cuts come in the current county budget, “we go back to our departments and say, ‘look, we told you to expect problems,’” she said.

The county gets hit in several ways. If school aid cuts should reduce shared social services staff paid by the school districts, the county portion of the shared program gets cut as well.

Majority Leader Rodney Gaebel (RC-5) said he can understand the state’s position, as the county may have to mirror it.

“They may have to look at downsizing government. The only way is to streamline or cut programs,” he said.

Sullivan avoided a property tax increase this year with a proposed sales tax increase. If an economic downturn sets sales tax revenues below the forecasts needed, Gaebel said, the county will have to look at job cuts “as delicately as possible.”

“We won’t be looking at pink slips. If programs go, we’ve got other openings. We’ll move people laterally,” he said.