The numbers don't seem to make sense. How can 30 in Environment..=$535,000 and then 30 in Permits = $1.4 million-those numbers seem very strange. If you take the average of all departments something doesn't add up in Environment. As I read the proposals you had to have 20 years + in the system and be 50 years old. So given those requirements the numbers should at least be within a reasonable margin and they aren't. I think someone ,somewhere needs to explain the difference. Additionally, where are the other 126 retirees? I think those questions are fair. Unless the County is factoring in "replacement" costs for those departments,which would seem to defeat the purpose of the program.

Charles there are two other issues that are blowing in the wind. I would expect that those still in the drop program to have an impact on that savings along with a possible class action law suit regarding this article that Bryan wrote.

http://dundalk.patch.com/blog_posts/court-rejects-county-ethics-claim-against-barnhart

Not all county employees make the same salary nor do all departments have the same positions that make the same amount. Environmental may have clerks that make 25k while Permits has employees making 80k. Without details on what positions that is a hard comparison to make. The figures given are only for those departments listed. The remainder came from other departments such as Budget and Finance etc. There are a lot of departments not listed that make up the balance.

So when are we (the public) going to get a full accounting, for every department, including the counts of how many were transferred from one department to another to make up for the losses. And while we're at it, how about a count of how many jobs have been contracted out now that there are not enough county employees to do it. I know this is happening in maintenance (cutting grass, etc).

You guys are incredible. Baltimore County is the only jurisdiction not raising taxes, maintaining a triple AAA bond rating, and not furloughing employees. Stop looking under rocks, this County is under good management!

The poorly planned early retirement initiative has left Rec and Parks in a mess. This once proud department now can't seem to find its way. Round two should help them become even more ineffective.

The Baltimore County taxpayers would save millions every year by eliminating the medicare fraud by the Dumbcastle crew -department of Social Services on York Road Towson. Look at the Gaudenzia operation in Park Heights, that is charging Medicare for services they don't provide. Its called medicare fraud folks.

Dumbcastle is a gang of thugs that harass citizens, sit by and watch foster kids get sexually, physically and emotionally abused then get the Ruskin Price, the commander of the Baltimore Police to help cover up the child abuse. They wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars on failed rehab programs for Benjamin's mom. My son's mother has been in eight failed programs ordered by Timothy Griffith, Judy Schagrin and Branch. They don't understand bi polar, drug or alcohol abuse. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been poured into the dumbcastle swamp on failed programs for almost four years, Judy Schagrin. Why? Wake up Teflon Teddy Dallas and get the broom out and start sweeping the corruption out of this department. Have Schagrin, Branch, Levey, Niland and Ferguson follow Griffith out the dumbcastle door and into the unemployment line or let them continue screwing Maryland taypayers and retire them. The Baltimore County Police are a part of this child abuse cover up by Judy Schagrin and Branch, What a colossal waste by a group of incompetents. Fire them all!

HHR and DSS could cut the staff by ten percent and no one would miss any of these clowns.

Hey Jack, maybe the programs are not a failure, maybe Benjamin 's
mom is a lost cause. Maybe stop depending on free mental health services and get
some insurance and pay for treatment yourself....8 programs tells me
maybe the mom is a hopeless cause. You are really cool naming the folks at DSS, nice white trash move

Disquested: What you don't know disgusted is Benjamin's was raped at the age of 12 in the Salem Group home in Garrett County. The BCDSS group covered up this rape for about twenty years. All rape victims get traumatized and BCDSS provided no mental health treatment for twenty years. These clowns are clueless about bi polar and addiction issues. Judith Schagrin has presided over eight failed programs and only an idiot would continue doing the same idiotic things for four years.

Benjamin is a child disgusted, he is the victim by the jerks at dumbcastle who have done nothing to help Benjamin for almost four years and his mother for twenty years. People like you when the blame is squarely on the shoulders of this agency who is responsible to protect children. Why do you think they call it Child protective services (CPS)?
You have no idea what you are talking about disgusted. When the County Police, the social workers overvsight review board and the clowns at dumbcastle cover up child abuse, look the other way and are mandated parties, it is a crime and violates the annotated code. Look it up.

Hey Jack, it's one big conspiracy, everyone is out to get you..

Is it Benjamin or his mom? Maybe you are the idiot for putting em through 8 programs.... Not sure why you havre to call these hard working people names

Back to the topic at hand. I support the County in it's efforts to reduce the payroll and we are in much,much better shape than most and you must give credit where credit is due. However,this could be reduced to a simple excercise that would take 1 to 2 days,at most using one person. Somebody knows who retired, someone knows what they were making. It's spreadsheet 101, you list the people who walked out the door, you list their salary. You then add up the number of people and add their salaries. There really isn't any reason someone in the County couldn't do that relatively quickly. I'm concerned that that hasn't been done. It would at least give a quick snapshot of the people and savings and no names need to be divulged. Please County, I support you but this excercise needs to happen. Please put the doubters to rest. Have someone complete the basic excercise and release the figures.

To Mike,those are fair comments and observations but initially the least that can and should be done is a simple accounting of the 310 that retired. At least that number could be put out there. In time the real additional costs and savings will be vetted. I'm sure it takes time to calculate the health savings etc. but in the interim I hope the County can at least put some basic numbers together on the 310.