By canceling equipment purchases, eliminating positions and leaving others unfilled temporarily, and cutting park and construction projects, the Freeborn County Board of Commissioners trimmed $770,885 from its budget Tuesday.

But two of the most talked-about targets for cuts &045; watershed programs and the Extension office &045; still remain for board members to tackle.

&uot;There probably will be more budget cuts to come,&uot; said Commissioner Dan Springborg. &uot;This is the first swing, and this ain’t the final swing, unfortunately.&uot;

The largest source of budget cuts in earlier plans came from watershed funds. County department heads proposed saving $302,000 by cutting the program entirely, anticipating that a watershed district will be created to handle lake and watershed improvement projects.

In the Extension office, plans from the county managers and an ad hoc citizen committee had recommended cutting the budget by $60,000 and $130,000, respectively. Most local Extension programs other than 4-H would be cut.

Board members said they will wait until future workshops to decide how much to cut from watershed and Extension funds.

Tuesday, they came prepared to compromise on a package of cuts that combined the recommendations of the ad hoc committee, the department heads and the commissioners.

Under the plan, passed unanimously, the county global-information systems (GIS) department will be eliminated, as will an assistant veteran’s service officer job, a surveyor position and a half-time social worker.

The county will save $200,000 by canceling planned equipment purchases, with the largest chunks coming from the county recorder’s office ($50,000) and the county’s fleet of cars ($40,000).

Vacancies in the sheriff’s department, public health, human services and environmental services, though the jobs may still be filled, will save the county another $186,000 over what it had budgeted for.

A total of $90,000 in park improvements will also be delayed.

The county is cutting its expenses in anticipation of state aid cuts stemming from Minnesota’s budget deficit.