High gas prices hobble cities nationwide

Los Angeles Times

DENVER -- Squeezed by soaring energy prices, governments around the nation are reacting just like consumers -- changing basic routines, and scrimping and saving in order to get by.

The El Paso County Sheriff's Department in southeastern Colorado has ended car patrols of its 2,000-square-mile jurisdiction. One Ohio sheriff is putting his deputies into golf carts. Stillwater, Okla., has stopped mowing the grass on nearly half of its parkland. Cleveland is remapping its trash pickup routes to cut costs.

"I know it's a step backwards," said El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa, whose deputies will now respond only to calls for help. "But when the dollars aren't there, they aren't there."

High energy costs have taken a toll on government budgets already strained by the housing collapse. "They have a much more direct role in affecting consumer confidence, which can affect sales tax revenue, which accounts for one-third of state revenues," said Arturo Perez, an analyst at the National Conference of State Legislatures.