WARREN — Projected budgets from 28 Trumbull County departments and entities are being reduced from more than $81 million originally requested to slightly more than $68 million.

The county’s projected 2025 general fund budget is $66,581,108.36. Commissioners are expected to meet Wednesday to further reduce recommended spending by another $1,658,045. The county must establish its final budget by April 1.

Commissioners have spent several weeks meeting to determine what areas in the budget requests received in December can be reduced or eliminated, so they can balance the county’s overall general fund budget. Some department and agency heads have been attending the commissioners’ workshops to defend their financial requests.

SHERIFF’S OFFICE

Commissioners have been grappling with what to do with the sheriff’s office request of approximately $20.8 million because it was based on information provided by former sheriff Paul Monroe. New Trumbull County Sheriff Mike Wilson’s chief financial officer, Mark Manning, said the department needs more deputies on the road, especially at night, and it needs more correction officers in the jail.

Manning said the sheriff wants to have deputies in each of the county’s four quadrants every night.

“We are trying to add a few people to stop the overtime in the jail,” he said. “We don’t want people walking out of the jail because they are forced to work double time all of the time.”

Commissioner Tony Bernard said the county should provide the sheriff’s office whatever it requests, because it is dealing with public safety.

“I don’t want to get to October and November and the sheriff comes to us saying he is out of money and he has to pull all of the deputies off the road,” Bernard said. “We want police protection in the townships. When someone calls 911, I want to make sure we have a car that can get up north to answer a problem.”

Commissioner Denny Malloy suggested providing the department $17.2 million, which is the same amount the department used in 2024.

He said Wilson wants to grow his department, instead of maintaining the needed baseline.

“We need to know the minimum to operate,” Malloy said.

Manning said the minimum operating budget is approximately $20 million.

“That’s not the minimum,” Malloy responded. “If there is any leeway in the budget later in the year, we know we are likely to have to provide money to the sheriff.”

METROPARKS

The commissioners chose not to address the Trumbull County MetroParks board’s request for $136,381 from the general fund during Wednesday’s meeting. It will address the MetroParks’ budget at a later meeting.

The Trumbull MetroParks board is in a fight with Warren Township residents over the demolition of the Leavittsburg Dam. The board in 2022 was provided an Ohio Environmental Protection Agency grant of approximately $3.2 million for the dam’s removal.

Warren Township residents are looking at alternatives to the removal of the dam because of various concerns they have about what would happen to surrounding properties.

Township officials recently suggested the commissioners not provide county funding to the MetroParks board, until it addresses the township’s concerns about the dam.

VETERANS SERVICE, COURTS

Malloy questioned why the Veterans Service Commission is asking for $2 million for its 2025 budget when it received a little more than $1.7 million in 2024.

“Why do they want $300,000 more?” Malloy asked. “What services are they expanding for veterans?”

Trumbull County Assistant Prosecutor Bill Danso defended the prosecutor’s office budget request of nearly $4.5 million, which is an increase over the nearly $3.5 million used in 2024.

“We lost a grant that provided $250,000 a year to our office,” Danso said. “This grant paid for two full-time employees. We now will have to pay for the employees from our budget.”

There also is an effort to increase the number of hours for a part-time employee from 20 hours to approximately 32 hours a week.

“That’s the only new budget request for this year,” he said.

Danso noted the prosecutor did budget for some retirements expected to take place in 2025.

“Our request is very realistic of what it will take to maintain the staff of our office as it presently is,” Danso said. “I don’t believe there is wiggle room in our budget, if it is to remain as it is.”

Malloy said prosecutors are going to have to find some wiggle room, because the commissioners are asking other departments to make some cuts.

“There is going to be a loss of some legal services,” Danso said. “We have burned our delinquent tax funds to pay for salaries. There is nothing extravagant in our budget.”

Trumbull County Probate Judge James Fredericka told the board he will work with them in reducing costs.

The probate court requested $2.6 million for 2025. It used slightly less than $2.4 million in 2024.

“It is going to be impossible to meet the needs of this community with what is being looked at,” he said. “We have an aging population. Because of COVID, our caseload has exploded. We have almost as many estates as Youngstown and we have thousands less people. We are doing the same work with fewer people than I had when I began.”

However, Fredericka said the court can operate at $2.4 million.

BOARD OF ELECTIONS

Malloy questioned why the Trumbull County Board of Elections is seeking nearly $2.1 million for 2025, when it used nearly $2.2 million in 2024, which was a presidential election year that required providing increased services and increased overtime to its employees.

Malloy said the board should not require so much overtime in a nonpresidential year.

He questioned the board’s effort to provide two of its top paid employees raises of $18,000 per year for doing the same jobs they’ve been doing for years. Malloy said the Board of Elections should be spending a lot less.

The commissioners agreed to provide the elections board $1.7 million.

Commissioners will meet Wednesday afternoon to continue reducing the 2025 budget.

Afterward, the commissioners budget recommendation will be sent to the county department heads for review, which will provide them opportunities to suggest why they can or cannot manage under the guidelines provided to them.

If they do not believe they can operate under the commissioners’ recommendations, they will be given opportunities to justify further increases.