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Steamboat Springs — It was a tough move politically, but Routt County commissioners were correct last week to restore full hours and salaries for 11 airport employees and the building department's electrical inspector.

There are several solid justifications for Tuesday's decision, which came on the heels of three July 7 layoffs - one each in the Human Resources Department, Building and Plant/Purchasing Department, and Clerk and Recorder's Office.

We agreed with those layoffs, difficult and emotional as they were, and we agree with last week's decision, as well.

First and foremost, as Commissioners Diane Mitsch Bush and Nancy Stahoviak made clear, neither the Routt County Regional Building Department nor Yampa Valley Regional Airport receives contributions from the county's general fund.

"Neither one of them are tax-supported departments," Stahoviak said. "They both generate all of their own revenues for the services they provide."

In both cases, operating revenues come from fees paid for services. Cutting hours and salaries for those two departments, Mitsch Bush said, "is not going to hurt or help, either way, the (county) deficit."

That distinction alone sets YVRA and the Building Department apart from county departments that are funded by tax dollars - and that do have an impact on the county's $4.9 million debt this year.

Furthermore, YVRA is subject to Federal Aviation Administration regulations, outlined in FAA rules 139 and 150, which require safety and maintenance standards at certified airports.

Airport Manager Dave Ruppel told commissioners last week that the furlough program puts YVRA in danger of non-compliance with those FAA regulations.

It's worth noting that not only does YVRA operate in the black, Stahoviak and Ruppel said YVRA also declined about $240,000 the county had budgeted this year for airport capital projects, allowing the strapped county to use that money elsewhere. In addition, Ruppel said YVRA is paying the county about $414,000 this year for accounting, legal and personnel services.

Ruppel said that in the busy winter season, overtime pay is an invaluable and necessary benefit he can offer his employees, who even when fully staffed often are needed for more than 40 hours per week to keep the airport running smoothly. Adequate staff also is needed in the slower summer season for maintenance work at the airport, he said.

Stahoviak stressed YVRA's unique situation.

"No other departments have come to us and shown that they have had a problem meeting any regulatory and health and safety issues - that department is very different in that it has some specific requirements to fulfill," she said about the airport. "Our other departments when employees are on the furlough, or don't work as many hours a week, it's not a matter of safety - it's maybe a matter of inconvenience."

Stahoviak said Routt County Sheriff Gary Wall has not implemented furloughs for his staff, who are working regular hours but getting paid less.

"The Sheriff's Office is not under the furlough plan, so (Wall) couldn't really show us there was a safety issue, because his employees have been working their regular hours," she said.

Regarding the Building Department's electrical inspector, commissioners simply returned that position to a full-time 40 hours a week, rather than a part-time 32 hours a week.

Mitsch Bush said that, because the department is self-funded, a full-time electrical inspector makes sense for customer service in the valley.

"It's important for businesspeople and contractors to get inspections in a timely fashion," Mitsch Bush said. "If the local construction scene is improving, we don't want to stand in the way of that."

So far, in our view, the commissioners are ably walking the tightrope of balancing budget cuts while providing necessary services.