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Sheridan County commissioners ask attorney to draft hiring‑freeze resolution amid $160,000 budget shortfall
Summary
Facing roughly a $160,000 general‑fund gap, Sheridan County commissioners on June 9 asked the county attorney's office to draft a hiring‑freeze resolution to take effect immediately. The proposed policy would pause most hires, allow department heads to request exceptions, exclude boards with fixed budgets and include a sunset for review.
Sheridan County commissioners on June 9 directed county counsel to draft a hiring‑freeze resolution intended to reduce payroll expense and help close a projected budget gap for fiscal 2025–26.
A staff member told the board the county was "at a deficit to balance the budget of around 160,000," a shortfall that must be eliminated before final adoption. County budget officer Edith Shunk Thompson told the board that some revenue lines and certain insurance costs remained uncertain and that final revenue numbers would be clearer within a week.
Commissioners discussed scope and enforcement. They agreed the freeze should be effective immediately upon adoption and include a mechanism for department heads to request exceptions before the board. The board also agreed not to impose the freeze on entities that receive fixed budget allocations and are overseen by independent boards — for example, the airport, library and fairgrounds — because those boards control staffing under their fixed budgets.
Deputy County Attorney Clint Beaver volunteered to draft the resolution. "I'd be happy to help draft the resolution," Beaver said when the chair asked for assistance. Commissioners suggested a one‑year sunset on the freeze with the option to revisit earlier if revenues or other conditions change.
The board asked staff to produce specific language and thresholds to guide the drafting process, including clarifying whether the freeze applies to elected offices and boards. Commissioners also emphasized that the policy should be flexible on a case‑by‑case basis: departments would present requests for critical replacements if losing key personnel would impair essential services such as IT, road and bridge, or public safety.
The resolution drafting task was recorded as a referral to county counsel; no formal vote was taken during the meeting. The board's next budget deadlines require a balanced fiscal plan by early July, and staff were asked to return with revised personnel costs and any additional savings proposals.
The board left open whether the hiring freeze would be a fixed one‑year measure or a shorter term; several commissioners favored a one‑year sunset to match the budget cycle.
