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back off on those projects that the voters have approved. The other thing is that we also have to consider that there is a good chance we will have a republican legislature, which means that we will have even more cuts. b. Hiring Freeze Option Personnel Director Elaine Holmes explained the hiring freeze option as acost-saving option for FY 2002-03. This has not been done previously. The freeze could achieve some significant cost savings. budget. Commissioner Carey verified that this was a further reduction from the Manager's recommended Elaine Holmes said that the freeze would be in effect from July 1, 2002 through June 30, 2003. It would apply to positions that are vacant as of July 1St and to positions that become vacant during the fiscal year. It is a rolling freeze depending on when a position becomes vacant. The freeze would apply to positions paid from the general fund and would not apply to positions paid from non-general fund sources, such as the Solid Waste Enterprise Fund. Positions designated as critical could be filled. The freeze process would provide latitude for the Manager to make determinations that positions need to be designated as critical. The cost savings are based on same assumptions. The assumptions are that the turnover rate continues at 10°l0, 90°fo of turnover is in general fund positions, one third of vacancies are critical and two thirds are non-critical, and the average salary of vacancies is about $33,000. Assuming the freeze ends, there would be new revenue in 2003-04 to continue the current budget. There could be service impacts as a result of the freeze because services may be slower or less timely. It also may impact morale and turnover through increased stress and workloads. NOTE: Commissioner Halkiotis arrived at this point in the agenda. Chair Jacobs said that he would like to know the lapsed salary amount for the critical positions. He said that we should state that this has nothing to do with school positions, but only County positions. Commissioner Carey said that if we do this we will have to keep a close eye on the Department of Social Services because there will be an increasing number of people that need help because of the many layoffs. This will increase the employee turnover rate because of the stress. Commissioner Brown does not support a hiring freeze. She feels that the County will regret a freeze because we will run into some serious problems in maintaining services. Commissioner Carey said that he would consider a hiring freeze, but he just wanted to raise his concerns. He does not think it should be established for an entire year. Chair Jacobs said that a key component of this is the item on page two about the Manager being diligent in designating other positions as critical for the operation of the County. He said that we may want to talk about some guidelines so that we are sure that certain areas are addressed. We do not want to diminish services in critical areas that would tend to mirror what the State is doing to us. c. County's Capital Investment Plan Discussion of possible suspension of certain aspects of County Capital Funding Policy {particularly with regard to pay-as-you-go funding sources). John Link made reference to the County's adopted funding policy for capital improvements. Intangible and inventory tax would in fact suspend the allocation formula spoken to on page two of the policy, which describes how sales tax funding is distributed between the County and the school systems. Budget Director Donna Dean said that the largest revenue source for the CIP is the '/ cent sales tax and the dedicated property tax. The County Commissioners can choose to postpone certain capital projects for next year that are paid for with pay-as-you-go funding. She made reference to the document that identifies some of the projects that the County Commissioners may postpone. Commissioner Gordon asked how much money it would be if the County postponed their contribution of 213 of a penny dedicated to County capital projects. It was answered that 213 of a penny is $619,000.