Fox Waterway cuts budget, manpower

The Fox Waterway Agency says it will slice expenses and create a conservative budget that will rely only on guaranteed revenue and not count on reimbursements from a state short on cash.

That means the Fox Lake-based agency will have to endure personnel cutbacks, shortened work hours, pay reductions and an end to contributions for police marine units and fireworks shows.

Executive Director Ingrid Danler said the board will work with a $1.99 million budget this year, about $3 million less than what had been planned in the past.

“The board decided to build a budget this year only on things we are sure about, which is boat sticker fees and some smaller grants,” Danler said. “This year, we did not put any reimbursements or grant money into our budget but instead elected to take a more fiscally conservative approach.”

Danler said the budget will be voted on March 24.

The agency was expected to operate with a $5 million budget in 2011, but that number anticipated grants and other money it expected to receive in state reimbursements.

“The state still owes us some money from past work we did that was supposed to be reimbursed,” Danler said. “If we get those in, then we'll adjust the budget and do more.”

All boats using the Chain O' Lakes must have an FWA boat sticker. The prices range from $10 to $175, depending on the size of the boat and the number of days it will be in the water.

Because the agency is using only sticker fee revenue, Danler said, it had to lay off two administrative employees, reduce pay for employees across the board, and eliminate contributions to the Lake and McHenry County sheriff marine units.

By law, the sheriff's offices must patrol the waterways, but the FWA routinely donated money to the sheriff's marine units to help with the expense.

Danler added the agency has also eliminated donations to all fireworks shows in 2011 and will reduce the amount of cubic yards of sediment dredged from the bottom of lakes, cut its satellite boat sticker locations from 31 to 12, and not pay overtime to employees for emergency response work.

“I think it was important the entire management team saw what was happening around the state and cut back where we could,” she said.

“If more money comes in, then we can do more. But right now we have to rely on what we know we will be getting.”