ATLANTIC COUNTY-- Atlantic County employees will be asked this week to take an unpaid vacation next year in an effort to help cut spending and save jobs.

Governing bodies across the country are feeling the economic pain with cost increases beyond their control.

"We're under a state mandated Cap law and we have to meet that, we have no choice…we are in severe circumstances," explained Atlantic County Executive, Dennis Levinson.

Officials are working on the budget for 2009, and the new state CAP law restricts just how much each county can spend and has cut Atlantic Counties spending level by close to three million dollars.

So county officials are asking the roughly 15 hundred county employees to take a one week unpaid furlough, or vacation next year. "If everybody volunteers for the furlough program we can save about one million and a half dollars…we do believe for every one that does these sacrifices, there are jobs that are going to be saved."

Officials say the unpaid vacation does not have to be taken in consecutive days, it will save some but not all jobs, and there will be layoffs in the New Year.

"There will be jobs that will be cut regardless and that's unfortunate because we have to meet the state mandate that they placed on counties, state legislators and governor didn't put a spending cap on themselves."

Levinson believes the cap plan negatively affects counties in these tough times. "We're in this mess largely because of state spending."

To get ahead of this mess, Levinson and his team have signed on with the furlough. "I and my administrative staff...we will also be taking our furlough...and many of us will be working through that for no pay...it is just a simple sacrifices we have to keep quality of services here in Atlantic County."

The county will also work to eliminate or freeze all personnel vacancies and to cut all expenses to the fullest practical extent.

Atlantic County employees should receive the voluntary furlough request form by December 5th.