Preliminary County Budget: Last Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors
was presented with a projected budget deficit in the General Fund (GF) of $4,162,418 for
the fiscal year of 2009-10, which starts in July. (The GF Departments include: Sheriff;
District Attorney; Public Defender; Board of Supervisors; County Administrator; Auditor,
Assessor; Tax Collector/Treasurer; County Counsel; Elections; Data Processing; County
Clerk; Grand Jury; Juvenile Hall; Probation; Ag Commissioner; Emergency Services; Building
Dept.; Recorder; Planning Dept.; Veterans Service; Farm Advisor - building; Museum; and
Library.)
The 2008-09 GF budget was $34.9 million. Expenditures were under
budget, but revenues did not come in as expected. So we start the new fiscal year in the
hole in the GF for about $565,000 from the current year.
In the spring, GF Department Heads were instructed that a fixed asset
purchasing and hiring freeze remained in effect for next fiscal year. Most training and
travel budgets were severely reduced or eliminated and several reserve monies and fee
designations were drafted for funds to offset the projected 2009-10 deficit. Even so, out
of a total GF request of about $37 million for a streamlined, bare-bones operation for
next year at current staffing levels, there are projected revenues to cover only about $33
million. Bottom line is that more than $4 million has to be cut from the GF in order to
have a balanced budget. There is no place else to cut but personnel.
Ten vacant positions in the Assessor, Sheriff, District Attorney
(DA), probation, juvenile hall, courthouse grounds, air pollution, and planning
departments are being frozen and will not be filled. Employees in Administration and
elections have voluntarily taken less than full time employment. The museum director will
be retiring and has offered to serve as extra help. There will be layoffs in the Public
Defender, library, Recorder/Auditor, planning and building departments. (We do not yet
have the final proposal on which branches and services will be affected by the library cut
of $175,000.)
The DA and the Sheriff are what is called “constitutional”
offices. They are involved in the core function of government to protect general public
health and safety. They are also the largest budgetary allocations in the GF at around
seven and 34 per cent of the GF budget respectively. They were each given a reduced
allocation and made their own budgetary and personnel adjustments accordingly, (DA to cut
$342,287 and the Sheriff to cut $1,100,000.) These will result in noticeable service cuts
to the public.
Inmate medical has been running about $600,000 a year. (Half of which
are prescription drugs.) Public Health reserves have been used in the past to offset these
medical costs which are ineligible under Medi-Cal. The General Fund will be expected to
pay for most of the future costs. With reduced revenues from sales and vehicle license
fees, Public Health has been asked to reduce its budget by $232,000, which will likely
include layoffs.
The County has applied for $8 million in federal stimulus funds for
the Sheriff, DA and probation, which could offset some of these cuts if awarded. There may
also be early retirements, voluntary Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) waivers, placements
in non-general Fund departments, reductions in part time employees and other factors that
could reduce the need to layoff some employees.
Currently, the State is working on its budget which could have
additional implications on the County’s budget. If the State evokes Proposition 1a
and takes a portion of our property taxes, that could mean an additional $740,000 to $1.16
million County budgetary hit. If the State ceases Williamson Act subventions, that is
another $700,000 hit. If the State does not reimburse the County for the May special
election expenses, that is another hit. If Cal Works benefits are cut by the State,
General Assistance costs could increase to the GF. If the State releases prisoners back to
their communities, that could add pressure on the jail and probation expenses. If the
State defers reimbursement payments to the County, that will affect earned interest and
likely cost us interest because we must borrow to operate.
Non-General Fund Departments are also not immune to cuts. The State
is currently proposing program and public benefit cuts in Human Services and Behavioral
Health. For instance, funding for the Proposition 36 program, which diverts certain drug
offenders to treatment rather than jail, may be cut. The Governor has talked about cutting
CalWorks entirely. The State is also talking about taking Proposition 42 funding from the
Counties, which will impact Road Department funding.
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