Officials look for ways to cope with proposed cuts

BACKUS - Cass County will lose $400,000 more than the county's 2010 contingency fund designed to cover in lost state aid if the Legislature approves Gov. Tim Pawlenty's state budget proposal cuts announced this week.

The county had designated a $500,000 contingency fund, expecting some state aid cuts. The county board Tuesday during its regular meeting asked Administrator Robert Yochum to report back March 2 on ways the county can cut another $400,000 from the 2010 county budget.

The board also will decide March 2 whether to implement cuts in donations to other agencies to keep the full $500,000 in the contingency fund. This would mean Cass County Economic Development Corp., Cass County Historical Society and the two county fairs will not receive the second half of their 2010 allotments from the county.

The board by conference call to Sen. Mary Olson Tuesday asked her to implement state legislation, which would make payments the county receives from the state more reliable in the future. Making cuts after counties have set their budgets makes local government planning difficult, the board noted.

The cuts Pawlenty proposed would mean Cass would receive $359,000 less in state program aids. These aids partially cover the cost of state functions counties provide, according to Yochum. This cuts the last state money for Cass' program aids, he said.

The county also would receive $551,000 less in market value credits. When Cass certifies its property tax levy of about $20,000,000 to the state, the state had agreed to pay about $1.1 million of that in the past as a market value credit, Yochum said. Under Pawlenty's plan, that amount would be cut by $551,000 or 55 percent, according to Yochum.

While Pawlenty's state budget cutting proposal still has to go through the wrangling among legislators before becoming law, Yochum said he thinks governors usually get what they want. The county has begun planning accordingly for the cuts, he said.

In other state-related actions Tuesday, Cass commissioners voted to wait until after this legislative session to adopt any changes to the county's individual sewage treatment system zoning regulations.

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency had ordered counties to adopt new standards consistent with the state's by February, then extended that deadline to the end of June. However, changes MPCA is making to state regulations still are going through an amendment process. Many counties have called for changes from MPCA's proposed new rules.

If counties were forced to meet the June deadline, it likely would mean counties would have to go through the amendment process for their local ordinances twice in one year - once before June and once after.

Cass has begun a process to update the county sewer ordinance, but is waiting to make final revision until MPCA sets its final state regulation changes. Special legislation would be needed to prevent counties from losing some state grant money by failing to meet the MPCA June deadline.