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Lawrence ready for budget delays
By MARY GRZEBIENIAK
NEW CASTLE, Pa.
Closing the county courthouse to save money will not be an option in 2010, and harsh cost-cutting measures may instead be in store for Lawrence County if the Pennsylvania State Legislature again delays for months before passing the annual state budget.
Lawrence County Commissioner Steve Craig said Tuesday that commissioners have begun to prepare for the possibility of a late state budget by including a disclaimer in all contracts involving state money. The clause says payment will not be made if the state money stops.
Services that could be cut include medical-transportation assistance, foster care and some treatment services for juveniles.
Craig said the cuts could also impact county employees because 75 percent of county operations are funded by the state.
Last year the state budget was not passed until 101 days after its July 1 deadline. As a result, the county was forced to use its own general-fund money to continue services supported by state funding. Some providers helped by agreeing to wait for thousands of dollars in payments.
Commissioners set a precedent in Pennsylvania by closing the courthouse for two weeks as a last-ditch effort to save personnel costs and make it through the year in the black.
But this year, Craig said, this option is not available because the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has notified President Judge Dominick Motto of Lawrence County Common Pleas Court that it will not approve such shutdowns of the courts.
To make matters worse, Craig said there are no reserve funds this year to serve as a cushion. He said that if budget approval is delayed, services will have to be cut by mid-July or early August.