WAILUKU, Maui — Maui Mayor Charmaine Tavares said some county departments are agonizing over where to make 16 percent cuts in their current budgets.

But Tavares says everyone acknowledges the need to make the cuts she ordered to save $55 million without raising taxes or making deeper cuts next year.

Tavares has also restricted major equipment purchases and out-of-state travel in the face of higher costs and lower revenues.

Employees won't be laid off, capital improvement projects won't be canceled and line-item grants to nonprofit groups won't be reduced, she said.

The restrictions affect those departments budgeted under the county's general fund, which receives money from property taxes, state hotel room taxes and other sources of revenue. Departments using special funds, such as water rates or golf course fees, will work out spending restrictions separately, Tavares said.

Although the revenue from county property taxes is projected to remain flat, revenue from other sources is forecast to drop.

For instance, county officials expect 15 percent less revenue from the state transient accommodations tax than previously believed, constituting a $3.6 million shortfall.

Meanwhile, some expenses, including fuel and utilities, have risen faster than expected.

"Rising expenses and declining revenues so early into the new fiscal year give reason for concern that departments may not have enough funds to complete the fiscal year within budget without diligent attention to spending or strict restrictions," Tavares wrote last month in a memo ordering the cuts.

On Friday, Tavares told the Maui News, she expected some departments would unable to reach the 16 percent goal, but she hoped the county as a whole would be able to reduce spending in the fiscal year that ends next June 30.