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by becoming more efficient and conserving resources," the report pointed out. Total county debt also decreased by $33 mil- lion, to $577 million, and the general fund debt decreased by $14 million, to $125 million. A decision to fund OPEB (retirement) bene- fits resulted in the county's being in the black — the only one of several "benchmark" coun- ties to achieve that status, according to the report. The benchmark counties of similar size and demographics include Paso, Brevard, Marion, Seminole, Polk and Volusia. One strong indicator of the county's overall fiscal health is that it has about $12 in cash and investments for every $1 in debt obliga- tion, Ramsden said. That ratio is well above those for other benchmark Florida counties. The county's general fund reserves, however, are slightly less robust than they were in 2012. That is because the County Commission voted last year to use $46 million in general fund money to make up for a gap in funding operations in the current fiscal year. The gap was larger than that of previous years, and the decision left less in reserve for an emer- gency or for a "budget stabilization" fund. Even with the FY 2013 decrease in debt, the county's debt service total gave Patterson pause. "That is a little higher in debt ser- vice costs than the benchmark counties," Patterson said about the ratio of $7.71 in debt for every $100 spent in Sarasota County. The standard ratio for the benchmark coun- ties is nearly $2 less — $5.81 of debt per $100 spent. According to county staff, part of the reason for the higher debt ratio was the commission's decision in 2008 to stimulate the economy. The County Commission will hold its first workshop on the 2015 fiscal year budget at 9 a.m. Friday, Feb. 21, in the Think Tank of the Sarasota County Administration Building, 1600 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota. The meeting will also be broadcast online and on TV at Access Sarasota. For details, visit scgov.net. % Someone you know needs Planned Parenthood • Lifesaving cancer screenings • Parent & teen education • Annual GYN exams • Birth control Planned Parenthood Of Southwest And Central Florida • Sarasota 941-953-4060 • MyPlannedParenthood.org Sarasota News Leader February 21, 2014 Page 32