Riverside County Official: Any More Cuts ‘Would Hobble Us’

Riverside County’s treasurer-tax collector told the Board of Supervisors today that a planned 25 percent reduction in general fund support for his department’s budget can be absorbed, but anything beyond that would not make “financial sense.”

Don Kent was among the last agency heads to address the board on the final day of hearings regarding proposed spending cuts in the 2011-12 fiscal year.

Over the last three fiscal years, the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office has seen its general fund allocations drop a total 40 percent, according to Kent. The department has cut staffing 17 percent, closed a satellite office and increased employees’ workloads as part of the restructuring, he said.

While the proposed double-digit cutback in the upcoming fiscal year will require further operational adjustments, his office should be able to manage it, according to Kent.

“But any further cuts, I believe, don’t make financial sense,” he said.

The treasurer said decreasing general fund support below the $1.19 million on the table could hobble his office’s ability to enforce delinquent tax collections and complete the conversion of the county’s tax management system. Property tax data is currently processed using 40-year-old mainframe technology.

Kent also said any cuts “above and beyond” the 25 percent reduction in the next fiscal year might necessitate shuttering the treasurer-tax collector’s Temecula office.

“Every department head is making a compelling argument why they should be spared (cutbacks),” Supervisor Jeff Stone said. “But every department is going to have to share in the financial shortfall burden faced by the county.”

Kent told City News Service that going too far with cuts could put the county’s revenue collection apparatus at risk. Property tax receipts account for more than 80 percent of the county’s discretionary income.

“We’ll do the very best we can to keep everything intact, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult,” he said. “There’s a point where it’s going to become extremely painful to provide service and keep up with the workload.”

Assessor-Clerk-Recorder Larry Ward and Auditor-Controller Paul Angulo said planned double-digit cuts to their departments’ budgets will also pose challenges.

The county is approaching the final year of a four-year deficit reduction plan.

Chief Financial Officer Ed Corser said Tuesday that economic projections for the next two years are not encouraging, with predictions for zero growth in property tax revenue in 2011-12.

The county anticipates raking in around $592 million in discretionary funds to cover its bills in the current fiscal year — compared to $620 million in 2009-10.

Reserves should level out at $127 million, down from $360 million in 2008, according to Corser.

He warned against drawing down reserves further to balance the budget and erase a $30 million structural deficit.

According to the CFO, unknown variables that could yet impact the county’s balance sheet include the governor’s realignment plans — shifting more state-run services, such as adult parole, to counties — and voters’ possible rejection in the June election of Brown’s proposal to keep tax rates elevated as part of the state’s attempt to slash a $26 billion deficit.

On Tuesday, the sheriff, district attorney and fire chief reported an aggregate deficit of nearly $100 million going into the next fiscal year if targeted cuts proposed for their offices are not adjusted.

The board is expected to announce how it will address the red ink on Monday.