Numbers battle clouds Cook Co.'s planned cuts

Cook County Board members Tuesday tossed around the idea of roughly 4 to 6 percent cuts for the 2009 budget in the face of strong opposition to borrowing $326 million.

The cuts appear to have the support of Finance Chairman John Daley, who insists the votes for a bond increase aren't there. However, some board members voiced doubt that any cuts were necessary, insinuating that President Todd Stroger's administration has been feeding them made-up numbers to create the appearance of a crisis where none exists.

"The problems we have today started with the budget address which was misleading and inaccurate," said Evanston Democrat Larry Suffredin, decrying "numbers we're given that have little or no credibility, because they're not consistent from meeting to meeting."

James Ramos, an administration spokesman, said numbers change as funds are drawn down. "The county is still moving," he said.

Suffredin replied that that explanation would make sense, except that the county has been issuing numbers for money remaining in bond funds that go up as the year progresses, not down.

Board members did not take a vote on the cuts, however, and will revisit the issue Wednesday, with a vote possible on Monday.