The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors spent much of the week of June 7 mulling over ways to close the county’s more than $40 million budget shortfall.
The 2010-11 budget proposals presented by county employees included some drastically bleak money-saving measures, including a $14.8 million reduction in staff positions and benefits; using $29.5 million from the general fund and other sources to balance the budget; and closing the Santa Maria Jail.
In a letter to the Board of Supervisors, County Executive Officer Mike Brown said the $831 million-fiscal plan is balanced “from a technical viewpoint, [but] this status is temporary and precarious.” He attributed the shakiness to an ongoing slump in sales tax revenues, as well as the uncertain impact of the state’s pending budget on the county’s coffers. Brown also stressed that balancing the 2011-12 budget would be “extremely challenging” unless the board adopted more program cuts over the next year.
Several of the county’s department heads expressed frustration with the board and the county’s fiscal situation while presenting their budget proposals.
“It’s painfully obvious that we cannot continue to do what we’re doing—we can’t even have a status quo budget,” Sheriff Bill Brown said after urging the board to identify new sources of revenue.
Closing the Santa Maria Jail will force officers to drive arrested individuals down to the main jail in Goleta for booking—a move law enforcement officials, including Brown, say will jeopardize officers’ and the public’s safety.
Almost all of the county departments are facing staffing cuts. However, the public defender’s and district attorney’s offices have been budgeted for an increase of one position each, and the public health department has been slated for two positions. Nearly two-thirds of the departments will need one-time funds to balance their budgets.
The board is expected to adopt an official budget at the end of its June 11 hearing, which will be held at the county administration building in Santa Barbara. The public can address the board in person or via remote audio/video equipment at the Betteravia Government Center, 511 E. Lakeside Parkway, in Santa Maria.
For more information, visit countyofsb.org.
This article appears in Jun 10-17, 2010.