Calaveras County’s 20 departments employ some 441 people, few of whom share a job description. Even though a clerical worker in one department may have the same job as one in another, the 370 different job descriptions mean that it is unlikely that they technically have the same job.

So as the county cuts from staff and services, one County Supervisor has introduced streamlining the county offices by reorganizing 20 departments into five, offering incentives to employees to voluntarily cross train, and consolidating supporting roles to share costs and work loads.

In an guest column, Supervisor Steve Wilensky set forth an outline of what reorganization would mean for his county.

From the Calaveras Enterprise:

Newspapers these days are filled with stories of budget woes at the federal and state level, and yes, Calaveras County.

This year’s budget process, as in previous years, will eventually find enough cuts to bring expenditures into line with our expected reduced revenue. The results of this process will likely be a county that is less safe, an infrastructure that is still falling behind, and cutbacks or elimination of services that people need and that often save money in the long run.

Citizens clamor for smaller, more efficient government, and after three years of severe cuts we’ve certainly achieved the “smaller” part at the local level. Now it’s time to work efficiently so what remains is worthwhile.

Read the full article here.