Ugh, here it is again, that hellish thing we’ve all been dreading.
No, I’m not talking about the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors’ budget hearings—I’m talking about allergy season! Am I the only one who feels like they’ve got their beak in a vice?
It sure seems the supervisors are allergic to social and health services, doesn’t it? It looks like they’re going to cut hundreds of jobs from Behavioral Wellness and Social Services in the county to make up for the $35 million-plus budget deficit.
But wait a sec, is the operation of these vital programs the cause of the deficit? Nope! It’s employee pensions, and more specifically, a decision by the county’s Board of Retirement to lower the rate of return on all these pensions, increasing their cost in the long run.
Don’t ask me how rates of return or interest works, that’s all voodoo to me. But couldn’t the county have projected the outcome of such a move a little better? It seems like every time we hear from the county now, the deficit has gone millions of dollars more into the tank.
And why are Behavioral Wellness and Social Services the first to go? Those agencies help support some of the most vulnerable populations of people in the county: those with mental illnesses and children.
While supervisors like Janet Wolf expressed sympathy and sadness for the cuts, others like Steve Lavagnino are trying to be realists. That means cutting hundreds of staff positions from these agencies, according to the board.
But, it’s real easy for supervisors like Peter Adam to shrug their shoulders with a government isn’t here to take care of you libertarian air. He actually used the old “teach a man to fish,” proverb when describing the cuts.
Well, I’ve got a question: How in the hell do you “teach” someone out of mental illness? How do you “teach” a child to get out of the foster system?
This mentality comes from the same people who almost always oppose raising taxes, whether it’s on business or residents. The argument is usually this: Everybody is just barely making it. So, that goes for the low-income family down the street, the local million-dollar farming operation, and the oil companies drilling in the county? I doubt they’re all hurting in the same way.
Living in this county is a privilege, for sure, but who gets to share in that privilege? Just those wealthy enough to own land, grow some grape vines, or tap an oil well?
According to a recent report released by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the bar is now set higher than ever in Santa Barbara County just in terms of affordable housing. According to the report, a single person who makes around $50,000 a year is low income. If you’re raising a family of four, it’s $72,000 to be considered low income.
So as it stands, you basically have to make six figures to even think of owning a house or renting comfortably in the county. If you don’t, you’re going to be stuck in a cycle of struggle.
And if on top of all that, you can’t even afford an antihistamine during our hellish allergy season, I don’t know what to tell you!
The Canary is allergic to a high rental payment. Send your thoughts to canary@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Apr 27 – May 4, 2017.