Washtenaw County officials say it has been draining trying to address a $30 million structural deficit in the upcoming two-year budget.

But even if the county board approves the recommendations laid out by Administrator Bob Guenzel to close the gap for 2010-11, the county isn't out of the woods yet. It must trim millions more from its budget in 2012-13, according to a new four-year forecast released by the county.

"If we can get through this 2010-11 budget, what we really want to do is take 2010 to look at what we can expect in 2012 and 2013," Guenzel said, "and be much more proactive about how we build a budget rather than reacting so much about where we have to cut."

The following chart shows annual general fund revenues are expected to slide from $99.2 million to $90.2 million over the next four years. Two years ago, general fund revenues totaled more than $110 million.

The primary reason for the drop is the decline of the county's taxable values. The county expects revenues from taxes and penalties to continue to drop from $62.9 million in 2010 to $53.6 million by 2013.

Ryan J. Stanton covers government for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529.