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Dallas County Commissioners Demand Layoffs

By BJ Austin

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-737005.mp3

Dallas, TX – Dallas County Commissioners are warning the Sheriff and the District Attorney cut your budgets or we'll do it for you.

County Commissioners are frustrated with a puny list of budget cuts they've received so far from the Sheriff and District Attorney as they look to fill a 34 million dollar shortfall. Commissioner Mike Cantrell was not happy the budget briefing presentation from the District Attorney's office was about keeping jobs instead of eliminating them.

Cantrell: I don't want the DA coming in telling us that everything is going to fall apart if this Case Manger 2 positions goes away. That is not true. That is absolutely not true.

Commissioner John Wiley Price says all Departments need a reality check, that layoffs are inevitable because Commissioners will NOT raise the county tax rate.

Price: As we go to the voters this year talking about a new hospital, far as I'm concerned, I'm saving all the pennies for Parkland.

Commissioner Price says he anticipates a two cent rise in the Parkland tax rate to fund 750 million in bonds - should voters approve - to build a new hospital across the street from the old, and overcrowded, one.