BEND, OR -- The COVID-19 pandemic is complicating the process of developing a new Deschutes county budget. Unemployment in Deschutes county is the third highest in the state. Commissioner Phil Henderson said the proposed operating budget is 7-per cent higher than the last one. But Commissioner Tony DeBone noted the area is still growing just like it did in the Great Recession. He says the economy will recover quickly once the governor’s executive orders are lifted.