San Benito County Board of Supervisors approved $1.7 million in final cuts to balance the budget on the last day of budget hearings Friday.
In anticipation of a budget shortfall of $5.3 million, the supervisors asked county department heads to start offering up cuts and concessions in March, with much of the gap filled before the budget hearings began July 23.
During the hearings, the supervisors agreed to additional layoffs, reduction of hours and defunding of positions equal to 18.3 full-time employees. These are in addition to 23 other layoffs approved on May 29.
At the start of the Friday afternoon session, the supervisors were still looking for $461,914 from the general fund to balance expected revenues with expenditures for the 2012-13 year.
Supervisor Margie Barrios first broached the idea of using reserves to fill the last of the gap.
“I would support taking half a million from reserves to not hurt programs,” Barrios said.
Supervisor Anthony Botelho said he didn’t support taking money from the reserves, but wanted to look at more places to cut.
“We did end up last year using a substantial amount,” Inman said, cautioning that the dwindling reserves would mean little money to deal with a disaster of any kind.
Supervisor Robert Rivas suggested the supervisors agree on a threshold for how much reserves they might be willing to use to balance the budget with the idea that they would go back to the bargaining units to get concessions to backfill the reserves. He proposed if the bargaining units do not give enough concessions to fill the reserves used, the departments would need to make cuts to replace the money to the reserves.
The supervisors finally agreed they would be comfortable using $225,000 from reserves. To balance the remaining difference, they spent more than an hour discussing different scenarios.
“The rationale started by trying to take it evenly across the board,” Botelho said. “Why don’t we just go across the entire general fund and break it down?”
Inman pointed out that four departments had already offered up the amount of cuts the supervisors requested while other departments had not.
“It seems clear we should take from those who didn’t (give),” Botelho said.
To fill the remaining difference, the supervisors agreed to cut from the Economic Development Corp., the agriculture commissioner’s office, animal control, the district attorney’s office, the sheriff’s office and the probation department.
The supervisors also directed staff members to go back to the table with the bargaining units to get concessions equivalent to the $225,000 used from reserves. Botelho insisted the supervisors identify where the cuts would be made if concessions are not made by the bargaining units by a deadline of Sept. 28. They agreed additional cuts of $100,000 each would be made to the sheriff’s and probation departments.
The county administration is still negotiating with some of the bargaining units. Service Employees International Union Local 521 submitted their latest draft of a contract proposal dated July 26, while supervisors were in the midst of the budget hearing process. The updated contract, signed by SEIU officials, agrees that new employees will be hired under a three-tier retirement system that would save the county money down the road. The contract does, however, still include language that would provide a 7 percent wage increase to all SEIU employees if the county were to layoff or reduce the hours of any SEIU employees.
“As the largest unit of county workers, SEIU members take our role of providing services to the community very seriously,” said Martha Booker, the local chapter president, in a press release, that claims the group offered up 20 percent in concessions. “SEIU workers are the lowest-paid employees in the county, making about $41,000 per year on average. If we can offer more than our share of concessions, all employees should step up to the challenge as well. We believe San Benito County residents deserve a better budget plan – and a better vision for the future – than just cuts and more cuts to essential services.”
