De La Cruz backs out of trip amid cost concerns
A day after San Benito County Supervisor Jaime De La Cruz said
he planned to reduce the $1,700 cost to go to July’s National
Association of Counties conference in Reno, the supervisor has
canceled his trip, Assistant County Administrative Officer Rich
Inman confirmed.
De La Cruz backs out of trip amid cost concerns
A day after San Benito County Supervisor Jaime De La Cruz said he planned to reduce the $1,700 cost to go to July’s National Association of Counties conference in Reno, the supervisor has canceled his trip, Assistant County Administrative Officer Rich Inman confirmed.
De La Cruz was expected to present a new budget to the county board at next week’s meeting after first presenting supervisors with a proposal that would cost more than $1,700.
The initial budget included spending $700 on lodging, $490 on registration, $255 on food and $286 on travel. De La Cruz on Monday said he wanted to cut the trip’s cost in half.
Inman confirmed that De La Cruz informed county officials he has canceled his trip to Reno, Nev.
De La Cruz said he pulled out of the trip because it was bad economic timing.
“We need to evaluate all travel to see if it’s worth the cost,” De La Cruz said.
The supervisor added that the conference brings a lot of good but he couldn’t cut the cost by enough.
De La Cruz and the county staff could only cut the cost to $1,000, which wasn’t enough, he said.
Fellow board members questioned the trip at a meeting last week, prompting De La Cruz to say he would examine cost-cutting measures for a new proposal.
Less than a year ago, De La Cruz canceled a similar trip to a National Association of Counties conference in Nashville, when it was expected to cost $2,700.
