Glen Ellyn lays off three village employees to help balance budget

Three full-time Glen Ellyn village employees were laid off Monday in an effort to balance the budget.

"It's a pretty sad day in Glen Ellyn," Village Manager Steve Jones said.

The announcement came at a budget workshop Monday, where the village board was given an overview of the town's financials in preparation for the 2009-10 budget.

Jones said Friday will be the last day for the three full-time positions; the exact jobs were not immediately released.

One employee also will be changed from full-time to part-time, and other employees have had their hours reduced, Jones said.

The measures will save the village anywhere from $400,000 to $440,000. The staff and board have been working since January to trim away a $2.6 million deficit.

"I feel really badly about what we have to do," Village President Vicky Hase said of the layoffs.

The board is also contemplating a 1 percentage point increase in the sales tax, which staff pitched a few weeks earlier. That will bring in about $875,000 if enacted by July 1 and will also eradicate the deficit for the 2009-2010 budget. In a full fiscal year, the increase is estimated to generate $1.7 to $1.9 million.

"We really need more revenue or there will be significant impacts to service in town," Finance Director Jon Batek said.

An in-depth discussion on the sales tax is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday. The board will see an ordinance on the measure March 9 and have a final vote on it March 23.

Several more meetings will be held to discuss the budget, which will be up for final adoption April 27. A public hearing will be held April 13.

So far, the $44 million budget includes an expense reduction of 4.2 percent.

The major increase this year, Batek said, was $605,000 the board recently voted on for changes in the paramedic service. Glen Ellyn purchased two ambulances instead of renting them to provide more coverage in town.

That cost will be offset somewhat by the revenue brought in by ambulance calls.