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Sarasota News Leader January 24, 2014 Page 24 get out more in the community than he did as THE BUDGET CHALLENGE a deputy administrator. Much of Harmer's schedule during the coming months will be focused on the Fiscal Year 2015 That effort has not gone unnoticed. budget. This year the County Commission will In a Jan. 14 email to County Commissioner hold earlier workshops than it has in previous Christine Robinson, Fred Tower, chairman years to address its new spending plan. of the North Port Chamber of Commerce Government Relations Committee, praised Harmer will also receive budget proposals sooner from the department heads, allowHarmer. ing him and the finance staff to go through "The North Port Chamber had a Business the material and put together a "County After Hours honoring a North Port business," Administrator's Budget" to present to the a function held every month, Tower wrote. county commissioners. "Your interim county administrator showed "We'll be scrutinizing department budgets," up and [was introduced] and he spoke for a Harmer said. few minutes and introduced himself. His wife During the process — as long as he sits in also accompanied him. the chief administrator's chair — Harmer and Never, ever during my 13 years with the cham- staff members will be working to come up ber has a county administrator ever attended with a plan to mitigate a projected 2016 gena North Port Chamber meeting. We were very eral fund deficit, and that includes trying to honored," Tower added. "You have a winner." trim expenses. % Tom Harmer joins the commissioners at the dais during one of his first board meetings as interim administrator. Photo by Norman Schimmel