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Supervisors about to make tough budget choices
| Saturday, Jul 19 2008 12:00 PM
Last Updated: Monday, Jul 21 2008 11:46 AM
The county’s budget looks big on paper — $1.5 billion.
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The Kern County Board of Supervisors will meet for a special public hearing on the 2008-2009 budget at 7 p.m. Monday at the county administrative center, 1115 Truxtun Ave., across N Street from the Rabobank Arena downtown.
Supervisors will then hold hearings on the budget, presented by county department heads, during morning and afternoon sessions at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Tuesday. You can watch these meetings live on KGOV, the county’s local cable television station. The station lists available channels at co.kern.ca.us/gsd/KGOV.
The board’s agenda as well as some background materials are available online at co.kern.ca.us/bos.
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But only $87.7 million, or 4 percent, is completely under the control of Kern County supervisors.
And moving even that money, county department heads warn, could have dire effects on public services.
Supervisors take up the discussion of priorities Monday evening.
“Our budget will be balanced (by) not filling vacant positions. It continues to stretch our ability to meet the emerging and current health issues in our community — our West Nile virus, our meningitis, our MRSA (drug-resistant staph infection),” said Public Health Services Department Director John Nilon.
Nilon said under the recommended budget, the public will see less outreach and preventative health campaigns from his office such as the “Fight the Bite” campaign against West Nile virus. Less prevention ends up costing more when patients end up in the Kern Medical Center emergency room.
“We’re going to be cutting our outreach, we say half, but a little less than half,” he said.
Other impacts county department heads have outlined:
• Aging and Adult Services: closure of two senior nutrition centers in Rand and Tehachapi.
• Library: Hours at most branch libraries and the Beale Memorial Library will be cut by 16 percent.
• Parks: Will hold 17 jobs empty and slash utilities budget leading to brown, untrimmed parks.
• Animal Control: cuts to staffing would hamper efforts to improve care for animals and efforts to reduce euthanization.
One of the biggest cost increases burdening the budget is inescapable.
In 2007-2008, the county set aside $20 million for raises for county employees that were expected to take place that year. The raises ended up costing the county $24.1 million last year.
And additional raises negotiated last year will draw an extra $12 million from the 2008-2009 budget.
Phyllis Nance, interim director of the Department of Child Support Services, said she had to whittle the cost of large employee raises in the most recent two fiscal years.
In the end, one employee got whittled as well.
“Our allocation wasn't sufficient, wasn’t enough to absorb all of the raises,” Nance said. “Employees were notified they were at risk — most were able to retire, promote or transfer.”
But one employee, the fiscal support assistant with the least seniority, had to be let go.
Supervisor Ray Watson said when the board opens budget hearings this week, he will look beyond employee and department impacts to the challenges budget decisions will have on the public.
“Departments need to describe the impacts on the public — not necessarily on their departments — but on the public,” he said.
Of particular worry, he said, are social services used by tens of thousands of county residents.
“I’m concerned about the fact there are some heavy strains being put on the Department of Human Services and Child Support Services,” Watson said. “That’s a public safety issue as well.”
Supervisor Don Maben said the budget is stable — if tight and uncomfortable — for now.
“If (approval) was today I would say we could probably get through the year,” he said.
But there are rumors that California legislators might come looking for local money they could use to patch up the state budget.
“No matter what we do tomorrow, if they make draconian cuts and they cannot find other ways to (balance the state budget), we will have to re-convene in a special session of the board of supervisors to respond to the state’s act,” said Supervisor Michael Rubio.