SpringfieldNewsSun.com

SPRINGFIELD — It may seem that fewer county road improvements and delays in purchasing office supplies at the sheriff's office have no correlation.

But the issues are indirectly related because both are results of fluctuating prices of gas that are not only hitting the pockets of individual consumers but taking a bite out the budget of local company and government entities as well.

Diesel fuel broke through the four dollar mark this week, up more than a dollar from this time last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The high cost of diesel will have lasting effects on the county engineer's budget, Engineer Bruce Smith said, noting that from 2006 to 2007, the department spent an extra $35,000 on fuel for its 22 dump trucks.

"It's the same problem we're all faced with when we pull up to the pump," Smith said.

That problem is visible at the sheriff's office as well, where recent figures reflect the plight of paying more to get less. said Monica Weicht, budget administrator.

"There's no way to do less runs" to cut down on fuel costs, so expenses have to be cut in other ways, such as delaying purchase of new office equipment, Weicht said.

In 2006, the office purchased 86,360.3 gallons of gas for its fleet for $178,957.67, she explained.

In 2007, there were 83,836.33 gallons of gas purchased for $216,851.45, a 17.4 percent increase in cost for a 2.95 percent decrease in fuel, she pointed out.

The first two months of this year are already showing a 36 percent increase in cost from the same months in 2008, the administrator said.

Maria Fisher-Coleman, vice president of Bobby Fisher Distributing, 2024 Selma Pike, said her company has been consolidating delivery routes to keep up with rising fuel costs.

"We've eliminated smaller deliveries and maximized our capacity on larger trucks," she said.

The reorganization has not effected the workforce, she said.

Fuel has become so precious that Coleman has asked all drivers and sales representatives to not leave their company vehicles running.

"Sometimes they'll need to make a quick run inside, but even if they have someone waiting in the car, they have to shut the car off," she said.

Coleman said the crunch has not effected what may be most important to some customers — beer. The price of beer, she said, hasn't increased.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0374 or boutten@coxohio.com.