Butler County Controller Ben Holland’s office is being restructured, a move he says will save $47,868 in salary and benefits over the next 10 months.

County salary board members individually voted to approve the changes, which were announced at the commissioners meeting Wednesday.

Although a part-time accounting and financial manager to be paid $23.45 an hour is added to the office, the first deputy controller salary drops from $56,005 to $50,798.

Holland said in an interview that change was necessitated by Debbie Huth, first deputy controller, retiring.

He said Huth will assume the new part-time post to train her successor.

Holland said there are additional savings by leaving an auditor II post vacant.

According to Holland, the changes are beneficial.

“This was in the best interest of the county as a whole,” he said.

Holland sought more changes, but the board would only agree to those for now.

“I’m sure it will be revisited,” he said.

Commissioner Bill McCarrier, board chairman, said Huth’s retirement necessitated the board taking emergency action outside of a meeting.

The restructuring was one of several proposed for a salary board meeting agenda last week, but the session was canceled.

The changes, which also would have affected Human Resources, Information Technology and the commissioners office, were mainly cutting jobs due to the privatization of the Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

The cuts totaled $173,077. However, some of the reductions would occur through attrition, so those savings would not be immediate.

A portion of Sunnyview’s annual deficit, which county officials cited as the need for a sale, were indirect costs the county assessed to the nursing home.

Those indirect costs included hours spent by county government center employees on Sunnyview issues, which amounted to $295,609 in 2013.

Investment 360 of Lakewood, N.J., bought Sunnyview last May for $20.4 million.

Proposed cuts included an IT assistant systems manager and an HR benefits administrator.

Both Holland and Commissioner Jim Eckstein decried the proposed changes to Human Resources, citing a pay hike for three posts.