MONCTON, N.B. -- The archbishop of a Roman Catholic diocese in New Brunswick says he has been forced to sell assets and reduce staff in order to cover the costs of about $5 million in compensation to people who allege they were sexually abused by priests.

The number of employees within the Moncton Catholic diocese will be cut to 14 from 20 and the diocese will sell its office and a vacant piece of land, both in Dieppe, Archbishop Valery Vienneau said Thursday.

Vienneau said the office, which costs about $60,000 per year to operate, will be appraised and the diocese will seek a fair market price for it.

"We're not going to sell it at a sacrifice price," Vienneau said.

Vienneau said the diocese has faced declining revenues, registering a $200,000 deficit last year, and the sex abuse settlement compounded its fiscal problems.

"We had money before that could have paid that, but that money has gone to victims," he said.

Michel Bastarache, a former judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, was hired by the diocese last year to conduct a reconciliation and compensation process for alleged victims of sexual abuse by former priests.

Vienneau said Bastarache, who heard from about 80 people, will deliver a final report this summer.

In January, Bastarache said the payments ranged from $15,000 to $300,000 each.

Vienneau said he expects at least one person will seek compensation through the courts, and that could force the diocese to sell more property.

The reconciliation and compensation process was supposed to end last August, but it was extended to the end of March as more people came forward alleging they were the victims of abuse at the hands of clergymen.

In Nova Scotia, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Antigonish was forced to put about 150 properties up for sale and more than 100 parishes were drained of their savings as they dealt with a sex abuse settlement with 125 people.

That diocese paid out $16 million in compensation for confirmed and alleged victims of sexual abuse.

Vienneau said he believes the Moncton diocese won't need to take such measures.

"Right now, I don't think we'll have to go to the parishes and sell parish property," he said. "We're trying to solve this at the diocesian level."