By Zach Friend, County Supervisor 2nd District
County budget hearings begin on June 20th and last a little over a week, with night hearings in both Santa Cruz and Watsonville over that time. The Board of Supervisors is reviewing the $696 million budget, which constitutes an approximately $16 million reduction from last year, during these hearings. In a recent budget message to the Board, the County Administrative Officer noted that as the County emerged from the Great Recession, the Board has worked to limit the growth of the overall budget while focusing on restoring reserves and investing in key priorities.
Specifically, the Board has focused efforts on public safety, parks and health services with notable investments in mental health and substance abuse services, economic development and technological (broadband) improvements.
The proposed budget from County staff, reflective of recommendations from departments and input from the Board of Supervisors, includes the following elements:
Additional contributions toward reserves to further improve the County’s credit quality and ensure greater financial stability in a downturn- An increase in public safety and health services positions (including federally funded positions as part of the Affordable Care Act). However, these increases are offset by reductions in other departments which lead to no overall net growth in County staffing (in fact a net decrease of 4 positions from last year)
- Improvements to parks including within our district Seascape Park and Aldridge Lane Park
How is the Budget Allocated?
The discretionary portion of the County budget is what funds things such as parks and Sheriff’s deputies. Here is a breakdown of how those funds are allocated: 61 percent goes toward public safety including the Sheriff’s Office, Probation, District Attorney, Public Defender and County Fire.
Seventeen percent goes to General Government functions such as economic development, county facilities, and elections among other things. Seven percent goes toward health services and sanitation (note these are the discretionary funds — there are much higher amounts that are state and federal pass through funds). Three percent is allocated to parks, recreation and culture. Other funds are used for community programs and public assistance programs such as Medi-Cal outreach and benefits assistance.
Next Steps
While County revenues are up over last year, the County is still working on reducing its structural deficit. State economic forecasts anticipate a slowdown within the next few years and the County is working to contain costs (and increase reserves) in advance of any downturn. There is no question that investments in local roads and infrastructure (and deferred maintenance on County facilities) need to be made soon and the County is working on ways to accomplish these goals. In addition, it’s important that the County continue to create policies that encourage economic opportunity locally to continue to grow revenues to provide essential services.
These numbers outlined above are just a small part of the budget. While they provide the framework for our budget hearings they aren’t set in stone. Your input in this process is key to ensuring your priorities are reflected in the budget.
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Interested in sharing your thoughts? Feel free to attend one of the day or nighttime budget hearings or you can always give me a call at 454-2200 to let me know your thoughts.