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County prepares for deep cutbacks.

Article Excerpt
Byline: Matt Cooper The Register-Guard

Following their enactment of an income tax last week, the Lane County commissioners continue to study how to make up to $40 million in budget cuts.

The list they've come up with is ugly, and includes everything from emptying jail dorms and cutting violent-crimes detectives to eliminating psychiatric care for emotionally disturbed children, cutting animal-abuse investigations, reducing parks maintenance and closing parks.

The chance that opponents will refer the income tax to voters means the board can't count on receiving that revenue soon, if at all, to offset a possible reduction or elimination of traditional federal aid, said Commissioner Bill Dwyer, one of three commissioners who voted for the tax.

Petitioners on Monday launched a formal drive to put a repeal before voters this fall.

By law, in its budgeting process, the county can't assume it will receive the income tax revenue, officials said. So the county is drafting two budgets.

One is a doomsday scenario that assumes Congress provides no aid, which would trigger massive cuts. The other is a status quo plan that assumes the aid arrives.

The county must submit a balanced budget to the state by June...

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