After a few changes — including pay raises of as much as 16 percent for some sheriff’s deputies — DuPage County’s 2009 budget took its first step toward approval Thursday.

The Finance Committee voted to send Chairman Robert Schillerstrom’s $462 million spending plan to the full County Board for passage. The budget must be approved before Dec. 1, when the county’s fiscal year begins.

In his proposal, Schillerstrom set aside $3.4 million to help put salaries for Sheriff John Zaruba’s 377 sworn deputies on par with other law-enforcement officers throughout the county. Zaruba has long argued that his office has trouble attracting and retaining employees because they can receive much better pay in many other local police departments.

The committee voted to recommend using $2.2 million of that money — as well as $350,000 set aside this year — to give all deputies a 9 percent pay raise, retroactive to August. 

About 100 deputies who are in their first 10 years with the sheriff’s office would also receive an additional average raise of 7 percent next year, said Fred Backfield, the county’s chief financial officer. That would bring their salaries to 16 percent above the 2007 level.

Those who have been with the department longer than 10 years would get an increase of about 3 percent next year, Backfield said.

Noticeably absent from Thursday’s meeting was discussion of an 11 percent pay hike State’s Attorney Joe Birkett has requested for his prosecutors. Neither Birkett nor anyone from his office were in attendance to address the issue during the public comment portion of the meeting.

Members of the committee also amended the budget to include money to help pay for circulator bus routes in Addison, Downers Grove, Lombard and Oak Brook; to provide additional funding to local food pantries; to purchase new uniforms for the sheriff’s office; and to pick up the tab for increasing insurance premiums for county employees. With the exception of the insurance premiums, funds were shifted from other areas of the budget to offset the changes.

While the budget came closer to being approved, some board members continued to express doubts about the revenue projections on which the plan is based.

Brien Sheahan, R-2nd District, of Elmhurst said he does not agree with estimates showing sales tax revenue increasing by about 4 percent each year from 2010 to 2013 after slower growth next year.

“I just don’t believe that,” he said.

He said he believes the current economic climate is likely to get worse before it gets better and that it’s possible sales tax revenues will decrease in 2009.