Citing an expected budget deficit, Benton County announced a partial hiring freeze Friday.
The county is drafting its budget for the next two years and has projected a shortfall.
Benton County spokesperson Anne Thwaits said, like many other Oregon counties, they’re facing uncertainty because of what’s going on at the federal level– which also affects state funding.
“We can’t predict a month, three months, six months from now which of our current funding streams will still be in place and which ones will be gone,” she told KLCC.
Inflation has affected the county too, Thwaits added. It’s also experiencing a decrease in property taxes, permits, fees, and other revenue because growth has stalled in the county.
“Stalled growth means these funding sources do not grow either,” she said.
Thwaits said the goal with the hiring freeze is to cut down their expenses so they can avoid layoffs or cut programs.
“We’re trying to avoid losing even a single current employee,” said Thwaits.
Through June 30, they won’t post positions that they’d be previously planning to post.
Recruitment will continue for law enforcement and mandated positions.
