The county is considering closing the post by July 1 — which would save about $319,000 — as it attempts to bring expenditures in line with revenue to bridge a $2.3 million gap in its ledger.

The board was scheduled to vote on the closure Tuesday, but its meeting was canceled because of inclement weather.

It was unknown as of Tuesday evening when the issue would next be discussed.

It is uncertain whether the board will approve the idea, since the suggestion was made by the county finance committee without the consultation of the law enforcement committee. Commissioner Andy Schor, D-Lansing, said there was ample time for commissioners and committees to make recommendations, but the finance committee had to be proactive.

“I don’t like the post closing, and there are alternatives I would support,” said Schor, who said privatization of the jail’s medical and custodial services would save money but cause layoffs. “If it doesn’t close now, it’s going to close in the next budget cycle. It’s just a matter of giving (the Ingham County Sheriff Department) extra time to relocate prisoners and deputies.”

Eliminating beds likely would increase overcrowding, which could bring earlier release dates for more minor offenders as the jail makes room for severe crimes, said Commissioner Mark Grebner, D-East Lansing.

He said judges will have to be more creative with sentencing rather than using jail time as a default template.

He said halfway homes, an expanded tether system and community service could be better options and help keep beds empty for serious offenders.

Judge David Jordon, of 54-B District Court, 410 Abbot Road, said most MSU students he sees are minor offenders who do not deserve jail time.

He has used a mixture of tether, community service requirements and restriction from driving because he said students already are stretched thin for time and such measures will add strain to their lives while providing a clear consequences for actions.

Commissioner Randy Schafer, R-Williamston Township, said the county experienced overcrowding two or three times per week last year, and closing the jail post would exacerbate the problem.

He also said the sheriff’s department has been the scapegoat for county cuts for two years.

Six corrections officers also would be lost, although county officials suspect enough people will retire or leave the department to absorb such casualties and reduce the net loss of employees.

“It seems to me there are areas that could have and should have been addressed,” Schafer said. “But the target always has been the sheriff’s department.”

Instead, Schafer advocated consolidating the register of deeds and county clerk as well as the county’s two clerks offices, reducing the county’s drain commissioner staff and trimming the total number of county commissioners.

“I think it’s absolutely atrocious it didn’t go through the law enforcement committee,” he said. “Finance just decided to make a stab at it. The chair of the law enforcement committee didn’t know it was going to go through.”

Schor, however, said the sheriff’s department is not a “target,” as Schafer said.

“That’s bull,” Schor said. “The sheriff’s department is one of our two biggest departments, and our two biggest departments have taken cuts because they’re the two biggest departments.”