CROWN POINT | The Lake County sheriff said his department is putting Good Government Initiative recommendations into practice. Read the report.

Sheriff Rogelio "Roy" Dominguez said at a news conference Tuesday that he asked his employees to help him to respond to the Good Government study released in February that recommended changes to improve the department's efficiency and save tax dollars.

The sheriff said his department has complied with a number of suggestions without incurring the cost of adding personnel.

The Good Government study was privately financed by BP, Mittal Steel, NiSource, U.S. Steel and Whiteco and conducted by Maximus, a Reston, Va., consulting firm.

The Maximus report said the sheriff should reduce the number of older, higher maintenance cars in the department's 284-vehicle fleet.

The sheriff said he disagrees with that finding because many of the older cars were seized from drug suspects and are used by undercover officers in new drug investigations.

The Maximus report recommended the sheriff eliminate take-home cars for police officers.

The sheriff responded in April by forcing 27 police officers assigned to radio communications, prisoner transportation, the work-release center and the civil division to park their take-home cars.

The Maximus study said county jail correctional officers are understaffed.

The sheriff said he restructured his corrections staff and is hiring civilians to take over clerical duties once done by corrections officers to put more corrections officers on guard duty.