Hamilton County Facing Draconian Cuts

After $28.6 million cut from Hamilton County in the current two-year budget, here’s a surprise in today’s Cincinnati Enquirer:

Since June Hamilton County Commissioners have known they’ll have to find $20 million to cover a shortfall in the county’s 2013 general fund budget – the money that pays to prosecute crime, put deputies on the streets and run back office functions like collecting taxes and figuring levies.

Oh wait, that’s not a surprise!  When you lose nearly $30 million in funding, of course you’ll be looking at huge cuts.  Now, Hamilton County is forced to consider a sales tax increase while the wealthiest Ohioans and big corporations have seen their share drop consistently.  The alternative?

Cuts so severe that department heads say they will be impossible to impose.

County Administrator Christian Sigman is quoted as calling for a “transparent dialog based on reality, not rhetoric.”  Agreed!

State budget cuts to the Local Government Fund and tax reimbursements mean Hamilton County is not alone – even after a 25% budget decrease since 2007.  Scarily, this does not even include cuts like:

– $4.6 million from children’s services levies – $8.9 million from health levies – $11.9 million from mental health and developmental disability – $3.2 million to senior levies – $2.4 million to the public library system

No wonder we still get consistent traffic to CutsHurtOhio.com!

#local #publicsafety #statebudget