Lake Co. Sheriff's Office also feeling pinch at the gas pumps

Just like the rest of us, the Lake County sheriff's office is being pinched by the price of fuel.

And just like most of us, the office is looking for ways to cut back on consumption.

Undersheriff Charles Fagan said every $1 increase in the price of gas at the pump has a $1 million impact on the office's budget.

The office has at least 10 cars patrolling 480 square miles of Lake County at all times, Fagan said, as well as prisoner transportation vehicles and a fleet of boats for its marine unit.

Marine fuel tends to cost more than regular gasoline, so Fagan said a 41-foot former Coast Guard cutter owned by the sheriff's office will not be out on Lake Michigan this summer.

Other Lake Michigan patrols are being cut back, Fagan said, and may be reduced to weekends only.

Back on dry land, Sheriff Mark Curran said highway patrol deputies will continue to take their cars home at the end of their shifts.

Curran said officials looked at ending the practice, but determined any gas savings would be negated by the cost of having the deputies drive to a central location at the end of their shift to drop off the squad cars.

He said highway deputies are being asked to reduce idling time with their cars and be alert for other ways to cut fuel costs.

Contracts approved: The labor contracts for unionized sheriff's employees have been tentatively settled and are on their way to the county board for final approval.

Kevin Lyons, business manager for the office, said both unions representing the deputies and corrections officers have agreed to terms.

Lyons said the deputies' union approved a four-year contract that provides for 3.75 percent pay raise in the first year, 4 percent in the second year and 3.75 in each of the final two years.

Corrections officers also have a four-year deal, Lyons said, that calls for 3.75 percent increases in each year.

The contracts are expected to be presented to the county board at its Aug. 12 meeting, he said.

Judge advances: Circuit Judge Mary Schostok has been named the third vice president of the Illinois Judges Association.

Schostok, who has previously served as treasurer and secretary of the 1,100-member organization, is on track to become president of the group in three years.

On the bench since 1998, Schostok served as an assistant state's attorney for 10 years before being named a judge.

She has served in all branches of the judiciary, and is currently deputy chief judge for the civil division.