Planning for 2013: County budget $833k short at starting line

Officials have asked for $833,597 more money than the county will likely have to spend next year, as the starter pistol fired for Whitman County’s 2013 spending plan.

Financial administrator David Ledbetter presented county commissioners Tuesday morning with the initial 2013 spending requests from each department in the county’s current expense budget.

Total spending requests for 2013 is $13,543,742. Revenue projections for next year are $12,710,145. Both numbers are down from the $14,193,916 budget of 2012.

“We’re already working with department leaders to try and get that number down before...