MUSCATINE, Iowa — Tighter budgets and belt-tightening in Muscatine County could mean County Attorney Gary Allison will face a choice: Keep his private practice or campaign next year to become a full-time prosecutor.

The idea of having a full-time county attorney is an agenda item for the Muscatine County Board of Supervisors meeting that will begin at 9 a.m. Monday at the Muscatine County Administration Building.

It’s an idea that  has been discussed among members of the Board for two years, Supervisor Tom Furlong said Thursday.

“We think it would be more efficient,” said Furlong, a Democrat. “It needs to be done. It’s up for election (in) November, a year from now, so a decision has to be made.”

Gary Allison, a 63-year-old Republican, has been the part-time county attorney since 2003. Of the 99 counties in Iowa, Muscatine is among the 41 that have a part-time county attorney. It is a full-time position in neighboring Scott and Cedar counties.

Allison was first elected in 2002, when he defeated Democrat Eric Knoernschild. He ran unopposed and was re-elected in 2006.

“This is a very important topic and I will be there (Monday) to express my views on the subject,” Allison said Thursday in an e-mail.

In an interview, he said he would not comment further until the Board meeting next week.

As a part-time county attorney, Allison earned $70,071 in 2008. He also has his own private practice with an office he opened in downtown Muscatine earlier this month after leaving the Muscatine firm of Allbee, Barclay, Allison, Denning and Oppel.

The assistant Muscatine County attorneys —Dana Christiansen, Kerrie Snyder, Alan Ostergren and Korie Shippee —in 2008 were paid $88,328, $78,786, $78,605 and $76,432, respectively.

Supervisor Dave Watkins, a Republican, said the urgency of a decision will also help those deciding whether or not to run next November.

“There’s no specific (definition) to what ‘part-time’ entails,” Watkins said. “For some that might be 10 hours a week, for others a 30-hour-a-week job.”

Watkins and Furlong said the long-term effects of electing a full-time county attorney would save money and even out the workload among all of the lawyers in the office. It would also provide a consistent contact in the county attorney’s office.

 Furlong said any decision to reduce the number of assistant county attorneys would be made after a decision is made about the county attorney’s salary and position.

“We want someone fully engaged and dedicated as the full-time attorney,” Furlong said, adding that a part-time county attorney’s private practice can cause an imbalance in time management.

“I think in the long run the citizens will get better service and it will be a

cost-saving measure,” Furlong said.