Severe Cuts in Services Expected

Ventura County residents can expect to wait longer for government services, pay higher fees, make do with fewer police patrols and see more dead animals on their highways under a grim budget scenario outlined by county managers Thursday.

Faced with a staggering $46-million budget shortfall, department managers unveiled their proposals for getting by on less. They can do it, managers told the Board of Supervisors during a daylong special session, but it won’t be pretty.

The county’s elections chief suggested doing away with absentee voting, and he wasn’t kidding. Coroner Ronald O’Halloran said he might have to lay off not only his chief deputy -- but himself.

Meanwhile, thousands of residents who depend on county government for such things as hot meals, healthcare, police protection, veterans services and pesticide monitoring could see programs significantly reduced or eliminated.

Without mentioning him by name, some pointed a finger at Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for proposing significant reductions for county governments.

“It’s critical that people understand that the cuts they receive are not the result of some cold county ogre sitting in a Dilbert office,” said Colleen House, director of the Area Agency on Aging. “Your board has not been given any latitude in what to do.”

Schwarzenegger is proposing to shift $1.3 billion from county governments, with Ventura County shouldering a $17-million slice of that cut. But the county’s financial predicament is not solely the state’s doing, County Executive Officer Johnny Johnston said.

Spiraling labor costs -- especially pension expenses -- for the county’s 8,000 employees also have contributed to the imbalance, Johnston said. The sprawling Health Care Agency, for instance, estimated that employee earnings would rise 22% over two years, but that retirement costs would jump a staggering 249% in the same period.

“The combination of reduced funding and higher labor costs just happened to come together at the same time,” Johnston said during a break in the session. “And when you remove too many cards, the whole house falls.”

Johnston said the mandated cuts equated to about 1,000 jobs, about half of which were vacant. Layoff notices have already gone out to many of the affected employees.

Terminations won’t become real, however, until the Board of Supervisors approves the cuts outlined by managers. That is not expected to occur until late June, after Schwarzenegger unveils revisions to the state’s budget plan May 15.

Johnston said it was possible that the governor would restore some of the reductions he called for in January.

But even if he does, it probably will not be enough to stave off all the expected layoffs, the county executive officer said.

Leading by example, Johnston is proposing to cut 28 of the 132 jobs in his own office.

Some of the hardest-hit agencies would be those that depend heavily on the county’s ailing $676-million general fundAgricultural Commissioner Earl McPhail said the county’s $1.6-billion agricultural industry could suffer ripple effects if he had to follow through on cutting 24 of 62 positions.

The losses would include six inspectors, 15 insect detection specialists and clerical staff.

Farmers could have to wait longer for pesticide permits and face a higher risk of a crop-killing pest infestation because of fewer inspectors, McPhail said.

Pesticide drift over homes and schools could also become a higher likelihood because his office would no longer send a worker to monitor applications in residential areas, he said.

County Clerk Phil Schmit, who runs elections, said he was considering doing away with absentee voting because it cost more than going to the polls.

But Schmit said he could save four clerical positions in the clerk’s office by performing civil marriages.

His office gets 10 to 15 requests for such marriages each week that could be a source of revenue, he said.

However, people who just want to pick up a license would have to make an appointment or wait two or three hours as walk-ins, he said.

Kathy Jenks, the county animal regulation chief, said the loss of 10 positions in her office would eliminate after-hours pickup of wandering animals.

And she could no longer afford to routinely pick up dead raccoons, possums, dogs and other animals that litter county roadways.

Removal of dead seals on Silver Strand, Hollywood and Rincon beaches also would be eliminated, Jenks said.

“People don’t really like looking at that,” Jenks said. “But we’re at the point where they may have to look at it for a while.”

The county’s larger agencies have more diversified revenue streams.

But even the largest departments -- healthcare, public safety and social services -- will be making painful reductions.

To meet his budget target, Sheriff Bob Brooks says he would have to cut 105 positions, including 22 vacant deputy positions and 67 civilian jobs.

He also would have to reduce the number of helicopters available to help fight fires and perform rescues, Brooks said. His records department would be closed on weekends and deputies would serve fewer criminal warrants.

In the county jails, deputies would take the place of 42 sheriff’s service technicians who would be laid off.

Brooks said he made that decision because the jail population was becoming more hardened and the facilities more crowded.

Dist. Atty. Greg Totten said he probably would file fewer charges on low-level crimes.

He is loathe to do that, Totten said, because ignoring “quality-of-life” crimes such as vandalism and petty theft typically leads to more violent crime.

In the Human Services Agency, a program that provides hot meals to 500 seniors would be eliminated, and services for veterans and the homeless would be reduced by 75%, said agency chief Ted Myers.

Home studies for adoptions would no longer be provided for free and there could be delays in investigating cases of suspected elderly abuse.

One bit of good news is that the Health Care Agency would not have to close any clinics or significantly curtail public services, even though agency head Pierre Durand was asked to absorb a $16-million general fund cut.

However, to make up the difference, 224 positions would be eliminated.

Many are from supervisory or management ranks, minimizing the effect on the public, department heads said.

Medical Examiner-Coroner O’Halloran offered up his own job, as well as that of his top deputy, Dr. Janice Frank.

Or supervisors could transfer coroner services to the better-funded Sheriff’s Department, O’Halloran said.

Children who receive special education therapy through the county’s mental health division would see those services eliminated, said Behavioral Health Services chief Linda Shulman. About 600 youths would be affected.

Supervisors will have a month to digest Thursday’s presentations before they formally make final budget decisions.

At that time, they may decide to restore some of the programs on the chopping block.

“Usually, adopting a budget is fun,” said Supervisor John K. Flynn, a 30-year veteran of the process. “This year, it’s not exciting at all. It’s depressing.”