The Riverside County Board of Supervisors approved a lean, fiscally responsible budget for Fiscal Year 2010-11.

The budget approval was the final step in a process that began in March, when the board commenced a series of budget workshops to evaluate major spending decisions for the next fiscal year.  Each department director was called in to provide information for absorbing budget cuts in the midst of a $133 million shortfall.

Ultimately, the deficit was addressed with $71 million in cuts and $62 million in reserves.  Most general fund departments were cut by 19 percent and public safety departments by 4 percent.

This was my first budget as a County Supervisor and I noticed a few noteworthy qualities about this on-time, balanced budget:

• Fiscal responsibility – instead of relying on increased taxes, the budget kept expenditures in line with available resources.  Rainy day funds set aside in previous good years helped pull the county through the decline in assessed property values, an economic reality we are still experiencing.

• Teamwork – department managers were involved in the process firsthand by offering recommendations on where cuts could be made without drastically affecting core services.  Employee groups came to the table proposing a number of cost-savings measures.

• Realistic expectations – county staff is doing a terrific job performing realistic assessments of our financial picture.  The budget will continue to be monitored and adjusted based on potential state budget effects.

   

County Budget in the News

• Desert Sun: "Supervisors OK budget brimming with cuts"
• Press-Enterprise: "Riverside County supervisors OK final budget"
• Desert Sun: "State lawmakers should follow county's example"

Downloadable sections of the Fiscal Year 2010-2011 Riverside County Recommended Budget are available below: