Despite a gloomy financial forecast from the state, the San
Benito County Board of Supervisors said the county’s budget is on
target for the rest of the fiscal year.
Supervisors said it may be a bumpy ride, but the county should
weather the state’s current fiscal crisis if officials pay close
attention to spending during the next four months.
Despite a gloomy financial forecast from the state, the San Benito County Board of Supervisors said the county’s budget is on target for the rest of the fiscal year.
Supervisors said it may be a bumpy ride, but the county should weather the state’s current fiscal crisis if officials pay close attention to spending during the next four months.
“If everybody does their part, we should make it – for this year, at least,” Supervisor Pat Loe said.
Halfway through the fiscal year, the county has spent about 44 percent of its budget of approximately $65 million, according to the county’s financial report for the second quarter of fiscal year 2002-03, which was released Tuesday.
With the state facing massive budget cuts to get a handle on an estimated $34.6 billion deficit, county officials said they’re trying to stick closely to their financial plan.
Loe, who recently attended conferences in Sacramento with Supervisor Reb Monaco to get the latest information on the state’s budget picture, said the county should not expect any help from the state.
“In one word, the picture looks bleak,” Loe said. “Basically it’s imperative that we stay within budget this year because we don’t know how this budget problem is going to fall out.”
County Administrative Officer Gil Solorio said the Board is largely responsible for the county’s relatively good financial health so far.
“It’s been because of the Board’s conservative fiscal policies that we are in a positive position,” Solorio said.
While the county is asking its department heads to do what they can to stay within budget, the Board has already gone on record with a number of other counties around the state in opposing the state’s budget cuts that could take approximately $4 million from local government.
One of the proposed cuts that the Board has come out against is the complete elimination of reimbursements for vehicle license fees.
Eliminating the vehicle license fee would save about $1.3 billion statewide in reimbursements this year, starting Saturday, and another $2.9 billion next year.
The loss of funding, which is used to supplement a variety of local services, would have to be made up from money in the county’s general fund.
Already strapped for cash, the county would have to consider a variety of cost-cutting measures to make up for the loss of revenue.
The Board still has concerns about the state’s proposed elimination of the Williamson Act, legislation passed in 1965 that subsidizes farmers and ranchers and protects farm and ranch land from development.
Board Chairman Richard Scagliotti sent a strongly worded request encouraging local state legislators Sen. Jeff Denham and Assemblyman Simon Salinas to not only vote against the elimination of the vehicle license fees but to do what they could to protect the Williamson Act.
County officials said eliminating the Williamson Act could cost the county an estimated $750,000 in contracted subsidies. The loss of those subsidies would deal a heavy blow to local agriculture, an industry of more than $210 million annually.
