NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The news keeps getting worse about the middle Tennessee economy. With sales tax collections lagging, the Metro school system is scrambling to make ends meet until the end of the year.

Video: School Board Says Deficit Is Triple Expectation

Tuesday, the school board told Mayor Karl Dean that the $5 million shortfall they identified in September is now far worse than anyone expected, at $14 million.

The school administration said it has looked in every corner and has found $7 million it can potentially cut. As for the remaining $7 million, the board is still looking.

"It sounds like that's not on the table right now," said Metro School Board Chairman David Fox of layoffs.

The system's budget is made up of 86 percent payroll, but Fox said cutting personnel is not really an option so close to the end of the school year.

"As each month passes, reducing head-count becomes less useful for us in terms of making our budget work," he said.

The more likely option is to dip deeper into the school system's $52 million reserve fund.

"Reserve funds are for making up shortfalls," said Steve Glover, chair of the Board of Education's budget and finance committee. "I don't want to go into it much, because I don't see the economy turning around on any given day in any near future."

In another development, Dean and the school board talked more about the possible merger of the school and city libraries.

Both sides are exploring things such as how school students can have better access to Metro and university library collections and whether or not the school and Metro library system can do some joint purchasing.

They're not talking so much about adults using the school libraries.