CROWN POINT | Lake County commissioners said Wednesday they are saving more than $461,000 in tax money by implementing recommendations of the Good Government Initiative.

The three-member Board of Commissioners released a report Wednesday saying members have cut their payroll by attrition, reduced their fleet of vehicles and encouraged employees to work with other county and municipal agencies to maintain services at lower costs.

A 1,059-page study released early last year recommended more than $5 million in job and spending reductions. The study was conducted by Maximus Inc., a Reston, Va., firm hired by BP, Mittal Steel, NiSource, U.S. Steel and Whiteco to examine how local government can be more efficient and less costly.

County Attorney John Dull, who authored the response to the Maximus study, said major recommendations, such as closing the county's courthouses in Gary, Hammond and East Chicago, cannot be undertaken by commissioners because only Superior Court judges have such authority.

The judges have asked the Lake County Bar Association to assist them in studying the recommendations.

Commissioners said they aggressively addressed a Maximus recommendation to consolidate county, Gary and East Chicago weights and measures departments, which ensure accuracy of nearly 39,000 gasoline pumps, commercial scales and taxi meters.

The County Weights and Measures Department will take over the Gary department in February, saving $66,650 by reducing future staff needs and eliminating some vehicles and training costs, commissioners reported.

Commissioners said they also saved $100,000 last year by eliminating three payroll positions in the County Community Development Department, using cross-training to maintain service levels. The board also took steps to increase federal grant money revenues, commissioners said.