Budget reduction leads recorder to lay off two workers, cut hours

The recorder says his new hours will be noon to 4 p.m. beginning Tuesday.
LISBON -- Columbiana County commissioners cut the recorder's budget to start the new year, forcing the recorder to lay off two employees and change the hours of operation.
The commissioners appropriated the county recorder's office a budget of 13,872.47 for January, nearly a 7,000 reduction from the average monthly budget for 2005.
The 2006 monthly budget was smaller than the 2005 monthly budget for the recorder's office. The office had four employees.
Recorder Craig Brown said he is disappointed with the commissioners' decision, especially since his office spent 20 percent less in 2005 than in 2004 with no negative impact on recording or document return time.
The office handles business with organizations such as banks, mortgage companies, real estate agents, title companies and both state and federal government, he said.
"My goal has always been to provide good service to the public while spending as little money as possible," Brown said.
Cuts in staff, hours
Because of the budget cut, Brown said he has been forced to operate the office with only two employees and to change the hours for business from noon to 4 p.m. beginning Tuesday.
The "book room" in the courthouse basement will still be open for the public to search records from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
"It only makes a tough situation worse when you realize that two hard-working employees will not only stop collecting pay but also lose health insurance," Brown said. "The people that work in this office have seen bad times before and have done more than what was required of them. It is ridiculous to ask two people to do the job of seven."
He alluded to Delaware and Allen counties, which have populations close to Columbiana's, and whose recorder's offices each have seven employees.
Brown said the reduced hours were necessary because state law requires indexing to be performed daily and they must be allotted sufficient time to return documents to customers.
He said the office collected more than 1.1 million in 2005.
Temporary budget
Commissioners passed a one-month, 1.4 million temporary budget last week to get all departments started in the new year.
Commissioners will decide next year whether to enact a half-percent sales tax to increase county revenue. Three consecutive voter rejections of the sales tax left a 4 million hole in the county's normal annual budget of about 18 million.