AUBURN – Androscoggin County will not have a final budget before the year’s end. But county officials are hoping that a temporarily approved budget will comply with state rules requiring a completed budget by Jan. 1.

“Does that satisfy the letter of the law?” asked recently elected Sheriff Guy Desjardins during a meeting Wednesday. “I think it does.”

The Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Department is under the most scrutiny after budget committee members rejected its original proposal last month.

Desjardins plans to meet with Androscoggin County commissioners on Dec. 20 to finalize his department’s portion of the budget. Then commissioners and committee members will work to finish the 2007 budget by mid-January.

“I really don’t think we’re going to jeopardize anything in the county,” said committee Chairman Michael Bowie of the day-to-day continuation of operations.

Earlier this week, county Budget Committee members had anticipated receiving a proposal from Desjardins that would improve on one rejected in November.

At that time, the committee voted to postpone work on the controversial 2007 spending package – which included tax hikes, layoffs and furlough days – in part because then Sheriff Ronald Gagnon was not present to answer questions.

“It made no sense to proceed,” said committee Member Paul Labrecque.

“We did it because we thought it was the right thing to do. We did it for the taxpayers.”

The county commission budget proposal called for a spending increase of 3.49 percent, from $9.88 million in 2006 to $10.2 million in 2007.

However, last year’s budget was offset by more than $700,000 in county savings. This year, with no savings to absorb the increase, taxes paid by towns and cities would jump by more than 10 percent. To find savings, commissioners called for wage freezes and five furlough days for many nonunion workers.

Meanwhile, the commission targeted six union employees for layoffs: five corrections officers in the jail and the only full-time civil deputy.

Although Desjardins was not ready Wednesday to unveil the new budget proposal for his department, he did say that it did not include the vast layoffs that were proposed early on.

“This is my new administration,” he said, “and I have no intent of failing.”

Since the Nov. 15 postponement, the sheriff-elect has been working with employees on nights and weekends to come up with a new spending plan that would help ease the tension built up over job futures.

“What’s happening tonight is tearing those employees apart, and they need answers,” Desjardins said. “From where we were to where we are now, I’m in hopes the commission will be pleased with it.”