Will there be layoffs? We answer this and other questions about Riverside County’s $5.5 billion budget – Press-Enterprise

Riverside County supervisors Monday, June 19, will go over the countys budget for the new fiscal year, which starts July 1.

Rather than read 847 pages full of numbers and accounting terms, you can get answers about the budget here.

Q: How big is it?

A: The fiscal 2017/18 budget calls for $5.5 billion in spending, down 2.2 percent from the current budget.

Its a lot, but keep in mind that Riverside County is geographically about the size of New Jersey. And it has more than 2 million people, making it one of the 10 most populated counties in America.

County government is one of the areas largest employers with about 20,000 workers. Its also counted on to provide police, firefighters and social services, run a hospital, prosecute crimes, run five jails, provide lawyers for indigent criminal defendants and a host of other duties, from code enforcement to managing airports and maintaining parks.

The five elected supervisors have direct control over only about $756 million, or roughly 14 percent, of the total budget. The rest is money primarily from Sacramento and Washington, D.C., designated for specific programs.

Q: Hows the county doing financially?

A: Its under pressure. Revenues are growing, but its not enough to keep up with a series of new, ongoing and inflexible costs.

Q: Like what?

A: In 2012, supervisors gave pay raises to unionized workers, who agreed to pay more toward their pensions and accept a lower tier of retirement benefits for new hires. That caused a ripple effect that boosted the pay of non-union employees.

Also, a lawsuit settlement requires the county to spend millions of dollars a year more on health

care for jail inmates. Staffing costs for the John J. Benoit Detention Center in Indio, which opens next year, could be $50 million annually.

The county dodged a bullet when Gov. Jerry Brown last month put more state dollars into In-Home Supportive Services, a program that pays for in-home care for indigent adults in need.

In January, state officials asked counties to shoulder a greater share of the programs costs. That led Riverside County to impose a 6.5 percent across-the-board budget cut and prompted talk of layoffs.

Q: About layoffs are there any in the new budget?

A: More than 30 county employees, mostly in code enforcement, received layoff notices in late May. No other layoffs are planned, said county spokesman Ray Smith.

The departments are using other cost-saving measures to achieve their budget targets, he said. In addition, it helps that the states IHSS decision had less of an effect than originally presented.

Q: If not layoffs, whats the county doing to save money?

A: The 6.5 percent cut stays in place, and officials want to keep a tight lid on future costs. Thats led to friction between the county and unions in ongoing collective bargaining talks.

Also, a private consulting firm, KPMG, is getting more than $20 million to transform county government. Besides finding ways to be more efficient, KPMG is tasked with changing the mindset of county leaders to embrace a performance-driven model that uses data to make decisions.

Q: Hows that going?

A: Among other findings, KPMG said $40 million can be saved by changing how the county buys goods and services, and replacing an old human resources computer system can save $30 million.

So far at least publicly the Board of Supervisors and District Attorney Mike Hestrin are on board with KPMGs plan. But Sheriff Stan Sniff is more skeptical.

Q: Why does the sheriffs opinion matter?

A: Unlike other department heads, Sniff and Hestrin are elected by voters. That means they cant be fired, and they can run their departments as they see fit, and they have the freedom to openly disagree with the Board of Supervisors, which holds the purse strings.

If Sniff and Hestrin say the budget hurts public safety, it puts the supervisors in a tough spot. They promised in their campaigns to protect the public, but theyve been warned that unchecked county spending is unsustainable and theres nothing left to cut from non-public safety areas.

Q: Whats Sniff saying about the budget?

A: In the past, hes asked for more than the county executive office the day-to-day administrator of county government wants to give him.

Sniff argues his costs go up because of raises the board gave to his deputies and staff. Sheriffs officials have said theyve lost a lot of people through attrition, causing a drop in deputies patrolling the countys unincorporated communities.

Reading the budget document, theres a $57 million gap between what the sheriff is asking for $712.3 million and what the executive office recommends $654.6 million.

Q: What happens this week?

A: On Monday, supervisors will hold a daylong series of hearings with department heads to get budget feedback. Sniff and Hestrin will be given the opportunity to speak.

The board is expected to approve the budget this week; theres a June 30 deadline. Later this year, supervisors will give final approval when theres a better idea of what moneys coming in.

The Riverside County Board of Supervisors have a special meeting to discuss the fiscal 2017-18 budget.

When: 8:30 a.m.,Monday, June 19.

Where: First-floor board hearing room, County Administrative Center, 4080 Lemon St. in Riverside.

The meeting is open to the public and there will be an opportunity for public comment, although it might not come until the afternoon.

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Will there be layoffs? We answer this and other questions about Riverside County's $5.5 billion budget - Press-Enterprise