MALONE -- North County Community College will leave faculty vacancies open and not offer a planned environmental-science program in its projected 2008-09 budget.

College officials were in Malone Thursday to present the draft spending plan to the County Legislature.

Legislators, along with the Essex County Board of Supervisors, are the college's sponsors. Supervisors heard the same presentation last week in Elizabethtown.

The overall proposed budget totals $12,775,000, an increase of 2.7 percent over this year.

Each county is being asked for $1,140,000, an increase of $45,000 or about 2.2 percent, and $75,000 from each county will be set aside in a special capital-projects fund created three years ago for immediate maintenance needs and preliminary work on the college's master plan.

The draft budget, which is expected to go before the NCCC Board of Directors later this month, includes a request to increase tuition by $150 for New York students and $280 a year for those attending from out of state. In-state tuition is now $3,340; out-of-state, $8,400.

William Chapin, vice president of fiscal operations, and Thomas Finch, vice president of academic affairs, were joined by Interim College President Fred Smith and outgoing President Dr. Gail Rogers Rice, who retires June 30.

Chapin said utility costs, rentals and maintenance are the three large portions of the budget. He said the college uses 75,000 to 80,000 gallons of fuel oil a year and, under state contract, budgeted to spend $3.75 a gallon.

But County Manager James Feeley pointed out that, as of Thursday, the state-contract price was actually $4.08 a gallon.

Chapin said he would revise his budget numbers before taking the final draft to his board for approval.

Rental fees cover the space the college leases for its campuses in Ticonderoga and Malone, and officials are expecting those costs to rise next year, as well.

"This has been a challenging budget year, as we all know," he said, adding that some increased expenses were to satisfy state mandates.

"Some we have influence over, and some we have less influence," Chapin said, "but we made the decisions where we could."

draymo@pressrepublican.com