The Columbia Paper is reporting Columbia County is facing a projected loss of $13.2 to $20 million in revenue as a result of the pandemic-related economic shutdown, according to a July 16 press release from Columbia County Board of Supervisors Chairman Matt Murell. County Treasurer P.J. Keeler said his projections assessed “various revenue streams that the county ordinarily experiences over the course of the year, including sales tax, state aid, loss of revenue from county departments, anticipated failure of property owners to pay their property taxes, and reimbursements from the state and federal governments.” In May, Murell issued a memo outlining the steps the county was taking. Those steps included requiring all county departments to cut their departmental budgets by 20 percent, a hiring freeze and cancellation of all summer youth programs. The county also negotiated with UPSEU, its largest union, a deferral of certain contractual bonuses to be paid at a later date. All elected county officials were requested to return 10 percent of their salary for the six-month period from June through November, including members of the Board of Supervisors, the treasurer, sheriff, clerk, and the district attorney. The Board of Supervisors also passed a resolution for countywide emergency cost-cutting measures totaling $9.96 million. Among these reductions: 20 percent contractual, equipment, road work, capital expenditures, and 20 percent from outside agencies, as well as a hiring freeze, a pause in the summer intern program, a 13-pay period one-day furlough, the use of tax stabilization funds, and a voluntary full furlough plan. Read the full press release at www.columbiacountyny.com.