The sheriff provided a long list of cutbacks he has made in expenses, especially in operating the Wood Count Justice Center.
For instance, the menu for prisoners is regulated by state nutritional guidelines, and when he learned there is no nutritional value to coffee, he saved $12,500 by not providing it.
The sheriff also determined that prisoners can gain protein from beans as well as beef, which saves $50,080.
"It's still nutritious and still healthy, but we don't want them to have gourmet meals," he said.
Sheriff Wasylyshyn also found some cost-cutting and space-saving measures in record-keeping.
Since the first jail was built in 1865, the sheriff's department has been required to keep records of all prisoners.
Now that records can be scanned into a computer and stored electronically, he said, "we had a vanload of boxes scanned in to give to the Historical Society.
" Formerly, the office bought expendable folders at $3.50 a piece to store the records. "With 6,000 prisoners a year that equals $20,000 in folders," he said. "We now recycle the folders.
" Another budget-saving move Sheriff Wasylyshyn made was to cancel a $30,000 service contract for jail cameras, door locks and fire alarms.
He was concerned because the contract did not cover the cost of fixing broken locks. The county was paying $8,000 to $10,000 for lock repair in addition to the contract.
In 2006, service work in addition to the contract cost $24,000, he said.
The county commissioners agreed with him about canceling the service contract, and this year, the sheriff's office paid only $8,000 for service work.
In addition, the jail's alarm system must be inspected twice each year, but that was not part of the service contract either, he said.
Contracting a local company, he was charged $3,600 instead for the inspection. Sheriff Wasylyshyn said many companies believe "the government has a lot of money, so we'll charge whatever, and they'll pay it.
"But hay, there's a new sheriff in town," he said, with a laugh.
The county sheriff is responsible for a variety of duties, he explained.
Beginning with law enforcement, his office contracts with eight communities for additional policing beyond the county-wide services. He also oversees communication with fire and police agencies and the Wood County 9-1-1 system. The sheriff's office provides dispatching for all deputies and 18 local fire departments.
All cell phone 9-1-1 calls made in the county also come into his communications center. In previous years, those calls average 7,800 per year, but he expects more than 30,000 this year.
One reason for the increase, the sheriff explained, is that, for instance, one traffic crash on the interstate generates 10 to 15 calls.
Sheriff Wasylyshyn also oversees the sheriff sales of delinquent property, every Thursday at 10 a.m. at the county courthouse.
Other duties he noted are coordinating the Special Response Team (SRT) of 24 area officers, handling background checks and fingerprinting services for citizens and businesses, and maintaining a registry of sex offenders that can be viewed at his Web site.woodcountysheriff.com.
One of the sheriff's most public duties at this time of year is to declare emergency levels of 1, 2 and 3 for driving conditions during bad winter weather. "I try to hold back on level 3 unless it's an absolute emergency because it covers all roads in the county," he said. Only once last year did he declare a level 3 emergency for eight hours during a bad snowstorm. A level 3 prohibits anyone from driving except "essential employees" at area businesses.
He advised Chamber business owners to provide ID cards for employees who are designated as essential in case they are stopped by a deputy during a level 3 emergency.
The sheriff also asked that drivers cooperate with snowplow operators and emergency personnel by not driving at these times.
"And if roads are closed, your insurance won't cover you on closed road," he cautioned.