Stenger did not respond to the newspaper’s request for comment. An adviser, Paul Hampel, said in a text that staff members were reviewing the council’s budget documents. Stenger’s chief of staff, Bill Miller, has previously said that the county could “operate well with the recommended budget in 2019 and continue to provide the quality services that county residents have come to expect.”

Among the biggest cuts, the council proposes to pare $4.8 million from the amount requested for the police department. It would cut $6.3 million from parks, $5.6 million from health and $3.2 million from the county’s IT department. Page said the council’s budget mostly retained 2018 spending levels. For example, Page said Stenger’s budget included 50 positions that the police department has said it was unlikely to fill next year.

Stenger’s chief of operations, Glenn Powers, told council members last month that they should consider cutting an entire program rather than cutting across the board, but the council’s bills do not address any targeted program cuts. Page said those could come later after more talks with Stenger.

“I think the theme is that we are going to ask county government to live within expenditures from last year, and we have the ability to supplement if necessary,” he said.