MAHONING COUNTY City budget needs drastic cuts

The city's payroll is running two weeks behind schedule.
CAMPBELL -- The city finance director says more than $600,000 must be cut from the city's budget this year to make expenditures match revenues, but he isn't sure how to achieve the cuts.
"I need all the ideas anybody can give," said John Leskovyansky, finance director, after telling city council this year's general fund budget needs to be cut from $2,960,960 to $2,346,000. "We've got a lot that we have to finish shaving" from the budget, he said.
That figure will have to be cut at least another $150,000 next year to reduce the city's deficit and pay bills the city has incurred over the past several years, he said.
"We have to try to spur some development in the city. That almost has to be a priority," Leskovyansky said. "We can only cut so much. We're into the bone now, and I don't know how much more we can do and still function," he added. "We need to try to get more revenue," he told council members after providing a detailed 90-minute, line-by-line review of the budget Tuesday.
Councilmen Michael Tsikouris of the 1st Ward and Lou Jackson of the 4th Ward emphasized the need for the city to collect all the income tax revenue that is due.
Rising costs
The city, which is in state-declared fiscal emergency and has laid off six employees, will issue paychecks Friday to its employees, but they'll be the checks that should have been issued two weeks earlier, Leskovyansky said. "We're behind two weeks, and it's going to be awhile before we get caught up'' with the payroll, he said. More layoffs are possible, he added.
Noting the rise in oil, gasoline and diesel prices this year, Leskovyansky said fuel and vehicle maintenance costs are higher than expected.
He also said he'd like to explore ways to cut telephone, fax, cellular phone and pager costs. "Our communications costs seem to be extremely high," he said. Council will meet again to discuss the budget at 7 p.m. Friday.