How Cities in Area are Surviving the Budget Crisis

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With the recent layoffs in Georgetown, we sought out to see how cities in the area are dealing with their own budget problems.

For many cities across the state, it's been the same headache.

"The rising cost of pensions, environmental mandates...that's been going on for awhile, then of course we had the October crash of the financial world and then the ice storms, so cities are really suffering a lot out there are far as what they're gonna do to make budgets ends meet", says Sylvia Lovely, the Executive Director of the Kentucky League of Cities.

Nearly 400 cities make up the Kentucky League of Cities, many of which are trying to figure out ways to deal with the financial crisis cities are seeing.

"They're furloughing rather than laying people off, or not filling positions as they come open", says Sylvia Lovely.

We found this to be the case in some cities in Central Kentucky. Versailles, Paris, and Winchester aren't under a hiring freeze and haven't seen layoffs of city workers, but there is a hiring freeze in Frankfort, Georgetown, and Lexington.

Only Georgetown has reported laying off city workers, most recently laying off 12, including three firefighters.

Nicholasville, Somerset, and London also have been safe so far from layoffs and hiring freezes. Richmond is also on that list, but they do have some positions they say they haven't filled, and they say they are keeping a close on on the economy.

Like other cities in the state, many report they are looking for solutions to any budget problems they may have, just hoping to avoid layoffs.

The Kentucky League of Cities is working with cities throughout the state to make sure that the stimulus money that should be coming into the state from the government is put toward "shovel-ready projects" in cities, which is expected to create 48,000 jobs and increase options of revenue at the local level.