Softer Blow to Local Coffers

Ventura County government would get some relief for its cash-strapped general fund under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s revised budget plan, allowing managers to restore a few programs that had been scheduled for elimination.

But state reductions are still severe enough to require layoffs of hundreds of county employees and reductions in services such as police patrols and healthcare, County Executive Officer Johnny Johnston said Friday.

Under a revised budget unveiled Thursday, local governments would have to make $1.3 billion in cuts during each of the next two years. Ventura County government’s share of that burden would be $7 million yearly, $10 million less than Schwarzenegger targeted in an earlier budget proposal.

Combined with fast-rising labor costs and other state budget cuts, the county still faces a $36-million shortfall for the coming budget year, Johnston said. With a smaller property tax reduction by the state, there would be more money for such things as conducting November’s general election, continuing rabies clinics, running audits and collecting taxes, he said.

“But beyond that, there really isn’t much,” he said.

Johnston said he still expected about 500 layoffs, down from the 600 that county managers initially estimated.

The effect of Schwarzenegger’s revised budget would fall more heavily on cities, redevelopment agencies and special districts.

Under the revised plan, Thousand Oaks would lose $1.5 million in property taxes each of the next two years, Deputy City Manager Scott Mitnick said. The city’s redevelopment agency would also lose hundreds of thousands of dollars, he said.

Anticipating reductions, the city implemented a selective hiring freeze a year ago, leaving vacant two dozen jobs for analysts, planners and librarians, he said. It also is cutting travel and training budgets, he said.

“We can tighten our belts and withstand this,” Mitnick said. “But if the state reneges on its promises and there are reductions for a third year, that will have an immediate impact on services.”

Simi Valley would have to delay projects and leave positions vacant to make up its $1.1-million cut, City Manager Mike Sedell said. But police and fire services would remain untouched for now, he said.

As part of his deal with local governments, Schwarzenegger promised to campaign for a constitutional amendment that would forbid the state from raiding property taxes after 2006. Several local government leaders say that carrot makes the temporary cuts easier to accept.

With the popular governor backing the November measure, it stands a good chance of passage, several local leaders said.

“There’s never a sure thing, but if voters see a guarantee to the basic services they depend on, like police and fire, they will support it,” Sedell predicted.

Special districts, formed to administer such things as parks and water supply, might see the most painful cuts because they have few discretionary dollars to begin with, said Tex Ward, general manager of the Conejo Recreation and Park District.

His district’s property tax cut amounts to about 25% of his general fund, Ward said. Still, he does not expect to shut down any parks. Instead, he will recommend using reserve funds and deferring projects to close the two-year gap, he said.

“The handwriting was on the wall that there would be some kind of shift, so we have been prepared,” Ward said.

Even as local governments prepared to absorb the latest round of reductions, several leaders remained skeptical about the governor and legislators sticking to their promise to keep their hands off local treasuries after two years.

Many remember similar promises in the early 1990s, when the state first begin shifting away property taxes to help pay for schools.

“We have witnessed 15 years of false promises and state take-aways, year after year,” Mitnick said. “But we are kind of backed into the corner.”