Whatcom County orders hiring freeze amid budget deficits. Here’s what to Know

Whatcom County is rolling out immediate austerity measures to confront multi-million-dollar budget deficits projected for the next two years. County Executive Satpal Sidhu warned department heads that harder cuts are likely coming in 2027.

Here are key takeaways:

• Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu has ordered a hiring freeze and other austerity measures to address looming deficits in the next two-year budget cycle.
• Without cuts of 7% to 10%, the county is facing General Fund deficits of $8.3 million in 2027 and $14.3 million in 2028, Finance Director Randy Rydel and Deputy Executive Kayla Schott-Bressler told the County Council.
• All county job vacancies will require a 30-day hold and approval from the deputy executive before being posted, and discretionary overtime has been suspended.
• Rydel said the county is trying to weather a double-whammy of rising inflation and lower tax revenues, particularly sales taxes, aiming for a soft landing rather than a crash.
• Travel and training spending is frozen, and contracts using General Fund money are limited unless the service is required by law.
• Whatcom County had nearly a $700 million budget for 2025-2026 and a workforce of 1,154 people, including 13 part-time workers, after lifting a previous hiring freeze instituted in 2024.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.