PARIS – The Oxford County Budget Committee on Wednesday recommended hiring three more sheriff’s deputies, going against the wishes of the Oxford County commissioners.

A 5-4 vote on the 2005 budget request came after nearly an hour of deliberation. Committee members Monique Aniel of Mexico, Dennis Sanborn of Oxford, Bruce Bean of Magalloway Plantation and Russell Newcomb of Norway voted against the request.

The Oxford County Sheriff’s Department requested $186,5000 to hire three deputies at the start of the new year. On Wednesday, Sheriff Skip Herrick said he could postpone the hiring until July 1, reducing the total cost for 2005 to about $62,000.

Coupled with pay raises for Herrick and Chief Deputy Jim Davis, the Sheriff’s Department budget for 2005 now sits at $864,579 – an increase of more than 16 percent over the $742,199 budget approved for 2004.

Budget Committee members tossed around the commissioners’ proposal to hire only one deputy, reducing the department budget to $828,403. They also discussed encouraging smaller towns to work together to pay for police services.

“Perhaps that would be a solution that would be more palatable,” Aniel said of the latter idea.

The concept, Herrick said, could work, “but I can’t wait for those towns to come together and make that decision.” He and Davis said the department is severely understaffed and pointed out that no additional staff has been hired since a vacancy was filled in 1991.

Committee member Rob Heard of Porter agreed when Herrick and Davis said they have made repeated requests for new deputies over the last several years.

“I think it’s time for the county to step up to the plate and protect its citizens and its deputies, too,” he said.

Heard, Lee Holman of Hartford, Wade Rainey of West Paris, George Worthley of Hiram, and Fred Henderson of Greenwood voted in favor of the budget.

Bean noted that the new positions will require an additional $60,000 to cover benefits.

The committee seconded most of the county commissioners’ other recommendations, including unusually high raises for several employees. Commissioner Steve Merrill explained that the county is adjusting its pay scale to more competitive rates.

Initial department requests for 2005 came in at $4.9 million, up 13 percent from the $4.3 million approved for 2004.

The county commissioners will vote on the Budget Committee’s recommendations before the process is complete.

As of 8:45 p.m. Wednesday, the Budget Committee had not finished its budget review.