Pulaski County Sheriff Jeff Richwine warns that if his budget gets cut much more, he’ll have to start cutting services. “I’ve been kind of quiet about all the budget cuts, but it finally comes down to where you just can’t cut anymore and you’ve got to start cutting services,” he told the county commissioners Monday. “So we’re already kind of starting to look at that, to see where we could cut some things that wouldn’t necessarily jeopardize somebody’s safety and all that.”
Sheriff said Pulaski County’s challenges won’t go away, just because it has budget problems. “The issues this county faces are far more than just budget,” he said. “I think this is the worst drug problem that anybody has seen in a long time. We had some good work being done, as far as a work release program for the jail that has been just pushed off to the side. I understand that. But those problems are not going to go away. They’ll stay here, and if somebody doesn’t address them, they’ll get worse.”
One of the big budget challenges is that a significant funding source for jail operations is set to expire after next year. The county is already in a deficit, although that’s expected to decrease next year, after the county council made about $900,000 in budget cuts. Another issue is that the county has relatively low property taxes but the highest local income tax in the state at a time when its population is declining.
Richwine said he’ll also share his concerns with the county council.
