San Benito County officials hope the state Legislature will
reinstate nearly $500,000 in cuts to local law enforcement that
could result in layoffs.
Despite the state Assembly’s approval of a budget compromise
earlier this week, county officials are lobbying the state Senate
to reinstate the funds earmarked for the San Benito County
Sheriff’s Department and similar amounts for each of the state’s 57
other sheriff departments.
San Benito County officials hope the state Legislature will reinstate nearly $500,000 in cuts to local law enforcement that could result in layoffs.
Despite the state Assembly’s approval of a budget compromise earlier this week, county officials are lobbying the state Senate to reinstate the funds earmarked for the San Benito County Sheriff’s Department and similar amounts for each of the state’s 57 other sheriff departments.
The Assembly approved the funding in the form of several trailer bills that were attached to the bud-get compromise.
“I was pleased the Assembly remembered some of the monies rejected by the Senate,” County Administrative Officer Gil Solorio said.
Solorio has been working with Sheriff Curtis Hill to have the funds reinstated to avoid possible cuts in services or personnel at the sheriff’s department.
“One of the two deputies assigned to patrol the South County was essentially cut out by the Senate’s budget agreement, along with two correctional officers at the jail,” Hill said.
If the funding cuts remain, they will seriously deplete an already smaller than average force.
“The San Benito County Sheriff’s Department has only half the number of deputies that a county of like-size has,” Hill said. “The Senate made a grave mistake in approving those cuts. What they’ve done is taken all of that responsibility that the state has and shifted that to local government.”
However the state’s budget crisis eventually works out, Hill said the department will continue to do its duty.
“We’re going to continue to provide public safety for this county one way or another,” he said.
Solorio agreed with Hill’s assessment of the situation.
“The Senate’s version was exceedingly harsh to law enforcement,” Solorio said. “We have been speaking with the Assembly and encouraging them to reinstate the funding.”
With a couple more steps to go before the budget is finalized, officials said they are not going to declare a victory or defeat just yet.
“It’s still too early to panic. I first want to wait and have the state analyst define what this budget means numerically speaking,” Solorio said.
With the Board of Supervisors scheduled to begin budget hearings next week, Solorio said he may not have time to determine how the proposed state budget agreement will affect the county’s financial standing.
“I need the numbers before I can determine how they fit into our current budget scenario,” Solorio said.
Because of the remaining uncertainty surrounding the state budget, Solorio said the county will most likely follow the proposed budget until more definite answers can be determined.
“It will likely be necessary to reconvene the Board on budget issues as late as September,” Solorio said.
