The Butler County commissioners are using a new budget monitoring process to keep costs down.

County Commissioner Leslie Osche, board chair, said in an interview the entire county budget is being reviewed monthly and quarterly, checking revenue and expenses.

Osche said this new process would eliminate budgetary surprises such as those that happened in 2015, when there was less money than expected.

“A budget is meant to be a tool, but if it sits in the toolbox, it’s not of any use to anyone,” she said.

County Commissioner Kim Geyer said ongoing budget monitoring is vital to prevent financial curveballs and help with planning.

“In previous history of the commissioners, they never sat down and looked at quarterlies,” Geyer said.

She said each line item would be updated, so departments and row offices keep track of their spending.

“It’s better fiscal management overall,” Geyer said.

Osche said county chief clerk Scott Andrejchak would continue updating budget numbers by department and row office, but she wanted to focus on summary totals going forward.

“Expense categories are what I need to see,” Osche said.

She cited salaries, maintenance and travel costs as categories bearing scrutiny.

Osche said at the commissioners meeting Wednesday that the county spent $17 million out of the general fund through April, which is more than 27 percent of the 2016 general fund total of $62.4 million.

The total county budget is nearly $150.7 million.

Osche said expenses would have been higher if the county had not pruned expenses this year.

She stressed more monitoring and cutting are ahead

“We know we have a lot of work to do ahead of us,” Osche said.

Commissioner Kevin Boozel said the monthly updates would help department heads and row officers hold themselves accountable for controlling costs.

Boozel said an ongoing process of cuts and monitoring expenses would benefit the county.

“I think we’re moving in the right direction,” he said.