Robinson wants to keep hiring freeze and make more cuts to ensure financial health

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By Ray King

Jefferson County Judge Gerald Robinson is calling for a continuation of the county’s hiring freeze and the elimination of some positions as a way to ensure continued financial health for the county.

Robinson addressed a special called meeting of the Quorum Court’s Budget and Finance Committee about what he saw would be necessary, particularly since the county continues to lose population and tax revenue.

After the meeting, Robinson spoke to Deltaplex News.

Robinson said that from a population high of 90,000 and a Class 6 rating in 1980, the population in the 2010 census was 77,239 and when the results of the 2020 census are reported Jefferson County’s population is projected to be around 64,000. Even though the population has dropped, Robinson said the number of county employees has increased. That population lost will also result in the County being reclassified as a Class 5 county.

He said he has gone around to Class 6 counties and Class 5 counties with similar size populations and looked at how they run their county government, and in every case, they had fewer employees than Jefferson County does.

Robinson was asked what those counties were doing differently from the way things are done in Jefferson County.

“We know what we need to do,” Robinson said. “Our biggest cost is employees and we have to reduce that cost.”

He went on to say that the county needed 15 fewer employees and was asked if that would be enough.

Robinson will make the same pitch to elected officials at a meeting to be scheduled later.