(PLACERVILLE, CA) – El Dorado County Chief Administrative Officer, Don Ashton, today announced that the Fiscal Year 2018-19 Recommended Budget has been delivered to the Board of Supervisors and is available online for review. State law mandates that the Recommended Budget be submitted to the Board on or before June 30th of each year. Supervisors will hold a public meeting June 18, 2018 to receive public input and make additions, deletions and modifications to the recommended plan.
"I'm pleased to present to the Board and residents of El Dorado County a budget that is balanced, aligned with Board priorities, and builds responsibly on the Board of Supervisors' decisions made last year," Ashton said.
The total budget is $605.4 million, 6.4 percent higher than last year's Board-approved budget. The General Fund appropriations – which funds largely discretionary programs – are $290 million, a $4.4 million decrease from last year's adopted budget.
In accordance with the Board's adopted budget policies, this Recommended Budget fully funds the General Fund Contingency at $5.5 million; General Reserves at $8.6 million; and the Designation for Capital Projects reserves at $5 million. If the County ends the current fiscal year with a higher-than-anticipated fund balance, the recommended priority will be to set aside those funds to offset CalPERS increases (currently at $3.2 million) and/or OPEB liability in accordance with the Board's budgeting practice.
Highlights of the Recommended Budget include:
A $315,000 set aside for possible staffing, equipment and other items related to the Vacation Home Rental policy issue to ensure efficient and effective permitting, regulation and enforcement.
$82,000 in General Fund monies to support hiring a homelessness coordinator whose primary purpose will be to secure federal and state grant money to help combat this growing challenge in El Dorado County.
$250,000 for community planning, funded through the Economic Development and Planning Department's budget.
$350,000 in the Accumulated Capital Outlay fund for required ADA improvements in County facilities.
$7 million in deferred maintenance projects, approximately $3 million of which is dedicated to the county jails.
"So much of what we provide in El Dorado County is a result of being a subdivision of the State," said Ashton. "This means the first priority is for the budget to be compliant with the mandates of the State, even if the programs it requires aren't fully funded. As a result of that reality, among others, we've had to become more efficient and leaner. Thankfully, the Board's fiscal conservativism last year makes it possible for this year's Recommended Budget to fund essential programs and services without negative impacts on our County's existing services and facilities," he added.
The budget was developed based on policy direction from the Board of Supervisors in accordance with their priorities and in collaboration with each department to evaluate their needs, expenditure patterns and requests for funding. Each County program was reviewed based on the following criteria, with the understanding that new and enhanced programs would not be considered unless a dedicated source of revenue could be identified:
Compliance with State mandated programs and services
Compliance with Board priorities
Consistency with the County's Strategic Plan and Board priorities
Conservative but realistic revenue and expenditure projections
Preparing for the impacts of future year commitments and requirements
Service level and system-wide impacts
Efficiencies
A formal budget hearing is scheduled for June 18, 2018 during which time necessary adjustments to the Recommended Budget will be incorporated. The Board is expected to adopt the final budget in September.
"Each year gets more challenging in the face of increased services costs, unfunded mandates and CalPERS increases, and difficult decisions will continue to come before the Board of Supervisors," said Ashton. "Yet this Recommended Budget is a comprehensive financial operating plan that fits within the constraints of available funding, conforms to established policy and meets the most pressing needs of the residents," said Ashton.
The entire Recommended Budget can be found here.
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