A special committee that will make recommendations for county budget reduction continued to hear from department heads Monday.

Highway Department Director Sue Miller explained that a budget reduction would inevitably affect road maintenance, emphasizing that the department’s staff size has been reduced from 45 in 1965 to 27 today, and a constrained budget over years.

The 2003 budget for the department largely dips into the county’s reserve fund. Miller reformulated the spending and saved $96,000, yet the fund transfer still amounts to $598,000.

&uot;The highway department has done that (budget trimming) every year,&uot; she said. Stressing that 81 percent of county road system has less than a seven-ton capacity, she said, &uot;Our level of service has to improve as the society changes.&uot;

Many programs of the Department of Human Services are mandated and funded by outside sources. Director Darryl Meyer said besides the reduction of the county levy portion, the department expects a drop of more than $1 million in that funding in 2004.

One of the possibilities Meyer suggested as a long-term solution was the consolidation of his department and the public health department. It would immediately generate $25,000 by merging two director positions, and supervising positions would be reduced in the long run by attrition, he said. According to Meyer, 13 counties in the state have already consolidated the two departments.

Public health is also the area where a lot of federal and state programs and funds are involved.

Public Health Director Lois Ahern said the department would have to stop filling vacant public nurse, home health aide/homemaker and clerical positions, which could lead to the loss of revenues from the clients and grants attached to the number of participants.

Administrator Ron Gabrielsen said the county administration department would leave the geographic information system (GIS) position vacant to save $56,585. Committee member Dan Belshan asked if the department could restructure the central services, which is budgeted $198,000 for 2003.

The committee will hear from the environmental services department Thursday, and then begin crafting its recommendation to the county board. The committee is made up of two commissioners and a group of appointed county residents.