Lake County officials extend government hiring freeze until 2009

BY BILL DOLAN, Times of Northwest Indiana
bdolan@nwitimes.com

CROWN POINT | Lake County government officials Wednesday extended a county employee hiring freeze to the end of the year.

But the move is not without its exceptions.

All Lake County Council members and commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance forbidding new hires unless they are to fill vacancies for county police, jail corrections, unionized highway department workers or other positions required under state or federal mandates.

Officeholders and department leaders also have the option of petitioning the seven-member council to fill job vacancies "for good cause."

Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter said after the vote he would be one of the first before the council to fill three expected vacancies.

"I don't want to have to close a court," he said.

Lake County Sheriff Rogelio "Roy" Dominguez said he will be petitioning the council to fill two vacancies in his work-release program for inmates held in minimum security. Dominguez said those positions are not covered by the ordinance's automatic exceptions.

The Lake County Council and Board of Commissioners met in special joint session for the second time in as many weeks Wednesday to craft the ordinance restricting new hires as officials attempt to cut $15 million from spending by year's end because of property tax cuts that were mandated by the Indiana Legislature.

Council President Christine Cid, D-East Chicago, said she knows of 74 job vacancies the ordinance will cover. She said the freeze will help the county build up savings for the coming tax shortfall.

County leaders passed a 10-day freeze on all hiring last week to give everyone time to consider the more permanent restrictions.

The only dissent voiced Wednesday was by Commissioner Roosevelt Allen, D-Gary, who said, "This is basically cosmetic. Historically, job freezes haven't worked. Why would they work in the present?"

Allen said the alternative is to let all department leaders and officeholders cut 11.2 percent from their current budgets to achieve the savings needed.

Councilman Tom O'Donnell, D-Dyer, said the freeze will answer critics who say the county would hire people in the next five months, then fire them Dec. 31 in a cynical pretense of job-cutting.