Lee County, IA – The Lee County Board of Supervisors has approved a hiring freeze that runs from December 8, 2009 through July 5, 2010. Chairman Gary Folluo says the hiring freeze is needed because of the financial struggles facing the county.
"This is in preparation for things getting worse," says Folluo, "we want to be on top of it and not get caught flat-footed."
Folluo says department heads will still be able to fill vacancies and add new employees. He says the hiring freeze simply means that all requests will have to be reviewed and approved by the Lee County Board of Supervisors.
Lee County implemented similar hiring freezes at various times during 2005, 2006, and 2007.
Folluo says Lee County's state funding has already been cut by around $80,000. He says more cuts are possible if the state's revenues remain down.
The hiring freeze excludes compensated boards and commissions.
Economic Development Agreement
The Lee County Board of Supervisors has also put an economic development agreement with the Lee County Economic Development Group on hold.
The supervisors agreed to provide LCEDG with a $150,000 grant, earlier this year, for use in an economic development effort. The panel tabled the formal agreement with LCEDG so the organization's attorneys can review the document.