RivCo Supervisors tentatively OK structurally balanced 2024-25 budget

The Board of Supervisors today tentatively approved a $9.6 billion budget for Riverside County government in the 2024-25 fiscal year that officials said is structurally balanced and will net reserves approaching $700 million.   

"We don't want to dip into reserves to balance the budget,'' county CEO Jeff Van Wagenen told the board ahead of its 5-0 vote on day two of budget hearings. "We know pressures will continue, costs will continue to mount and revenues will continue to flatten."

Van Wagenen said the 11% increase in the spending blueprint compared to 2023-24 was required to keep pace with obligations, including services and payrolls. The top concern for department heads going into 2024-25 will be the possible local effects of the state's estimated $68 billion shortfall.

"I'm worried about what's coming,'' Supervisor Kevin Jeffries said. "What's coming is potentially harmful to local governments, with potential budget reductions and layoffs. All these things (departments' needs) are probably going to be facing cuts this time next year. The state budget is tanking by billions and billions of dollars, and history shows that local governments usually follow a year or two later."

Van Wagenen acknowledged "there could be downstream consequences for us.''   

One of the bright spots going into the next fiscal year, which starts July 1, is that the county's reserve pool is expected to hit $698 million, compared to $590 million at the end of 2022-23. Executive Office staff estimated county discretionary revenue -- which, unlike programmed funding, the board may use for any purpose -- will top out at $1.22 billion, a $100 million increase over 2023-24.

Van Wagenen said there are remaining federal 2021 American Rescue Plan Act funds in the county treasury, but they'll have to be spent by the end of the year. The county received $480 million in ARPA allocations and another $500 million in 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief & Economic Security Act allocations. The federal infusions have been applied to "budget stabilization," community development, infrastructure projects and related programs.

The board will return to formally ratify the 2024-25 budget on June 25, folding into that final approval close to $20 million in further appropriations requested by agencies during the budget hearings.

District Attorney Mike Hestrin said he would need an additional $1.2 million over the proposed $207 million budget proposed by the Executive Office, as the DA's Office continues to contend with a mountain of state mandates, keeping prosecutors and other staff increasingly busy. Among the more difficult matters has been managing mental health "diversion" hearings, under which defendants can petition for treatment regimens in lieu of criminal penalties.   

Hestrin said diversion cases are up 3,393% since 2015. He admitted that utilization of the process is routinely an "off-ramp" for offenders looking for ways to dodge jail or prison.

Undersheriff Don Sharp told the board there had been success in "transforming the sheriff's department internally'' over the last five years during Sheriff Chad Bianco's tenure.

Among the efficiencies he cited was an increase in "lateral hires," or recruiting sworn personnel from surrounding counties, sparing the sheriff's department the cost of training, as well as reducing the number of sworn deputies working in the correctional system to less than 5%, making more law enforcement officers available for patrol and other duties.   

The sheriff's department initially requested a total budget of $1.15 billion for 2024-25, while the Executive Office recommended $1.09 billion. However, during Monday's hearing, Sharp told the board, "we're not asking for anything additional'' in the way of General Fund allocations.   

Fire Chief Bill Weiser requested a number of allocations above what the Executive Office recommended. The county fire department, which is operated by Cal Fire under a decades-long contract, would need $570 million to cover all foreseeable operational costs in 2024-25, administrators said.

Weiser listed multiple stations in need of replacement and upgrades, as well as the need to expand fire hazard "patrol staffing" and deploy more mitigation units for wildfire season. The board intends to supply some of the funding, but not fulfill all of his requests, preferring instead to take a wait-and-see approach.

Under the new budget, $2.6 billion would be appropriated to the Riverside University Health System, the largest set-aside in the spending plan at 27% of total expenditures. The outgo would translate to a 5.6% increase in health care-oriented obligations.

Public safety agencies would be next, with $2.2 billion in proposed expenditures, 8.5% more than the current year's outlays and 23% of the composite budget, while the social services portfolio would be in line for $2.1 billion in General Fund receipts, also representing an 8.5% increase compared to 2023-24 and comprising 21.4% of the overall budget.   

Other components would receive smaller outlays but still higher appropriations compared to the current fiscal year.