BUTLER TWP — With the state budget impasse continuing, Butler County Community College is taking steps to get a $3 million line of credit.

Jim Hrabosky, vice president of administration and finance at BC3, said the college has already funneled $1 million in reserve funds from the college-run bookstore to float the college’s budget awhile longer.

“We have cash left to get to the end of November, beginning of December,” he told the college trustees Wednesday afternoon.

The bookstore had money from years of savings, typically used for student-oriented activities and projects, Hrabosky said. The transferred money will be replenished once the state budget is passed.

“We’re concerned here,” said Nick Neupauer, BC3 president. “You put some money aside, and you save that money for a rainy day. Here it is.”

The college could call a special trustees meeting next month to pass a line of credit that would balance the books into 2016, Neupauer said. As of now, the next scheduled trustees meeting is in December.

A line of credit was initially estimated to alleviate budget issues until March, but it might not last that long because the college may lose money from the county because the county also is hurt by the state budget stalemate.

County officials, including County Commissioner Bill McCarrier, are on the board of trustees.

McCarrier this morning said the county has some concerns about its ability to make its final payment to BC3 for this year.

He said the county is looking into getting a line of credit to pay for human services agencies that have been hurt by the lack of state money, but he said the commissioners have learned getting a line of credit is more complicated than originally though.

So, he said the county may not get that credit line.

“We don’t know what we’re going to do,” McCarrier said.

He said the county gives $4.9 million to BC3 annually, and payments are made on a quarterly basis. The county’s next payment to BC3 is at the end of the year, but McCarrier did not know how much the payment amount will be.

Neupauer said, “I continue to remain optimistic that our state officials will do the right thing” in passing the state budget and getting money to back to public education entities like BC3.

The college has a budget of $27.7 million.