People who go to an Island County office on a Friday to get a building permit or a marriage license will be out of luck next year.

Island County commissioners decided to revise office hours in order to give the remaining employees in understaffed departments extra time to get their work done without being interrupted by the public.

The new office hours will be Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The offices will be closed to the public on Friday, though there’s the possibility that people can make appointments on that day.

The change won’t affect the county’s Law and Justice Building, which includes the courts, the sheriff’s office and the prosecutor’s office. Those offices must remain open under state law.

A couple of elected officials requested the change in hours. The budget director sent out an email to elected officials and department heads asking about options for reduced hours. Most of the officials preferred the Friday closures. The directors of health, public works and the planning department preferred no change, but said they would agree with any decision.

The county offices are working with skeleton crews because of budget cuts and layoffs.