Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson says the county’s budget is balanced for the next three years.
Patterson laid out his recommendations for a triennial budget to Oakland County Commissioners Wednesday night.
Patterson says that long-term planning has been key to maintaining the county’s AAA bond rating, even as property tax revenues plummet.
Patterson says the county has also managed to avoid cutting employee salaries and mass layoffs.
“There are no raises, no hiring, and every time somebody leaves county employment we grab that position, and cash it in…that’s called attrition. We’re managing it.”
The Oakland County Commission won’t formally take up the budget until next month, and are slated to vote on in September.
OaklandCounty is Michigan’s richest county—and used to one of the nation’s wealthiest until the recent recession.