Layoffs, Service Cuts Urged to Balance County Budget

Los Angeles County’s top financial officer called Tuesday for employee layoffs and across-the-board cuts in county programs, including courts, law enforcement and fire-protection services, to help soften the impact of a $36.2-million budget deficit.

Chief Administrative Officer Richard B. Dixon said the curtailment package--including the proposed layoff of 73 county workers as well as the reduction of county services--is needed to offset funds that were not provided the county in the state Legislature’s recently approved budget.

In adopting a final budget last week, legislators included less than half the $135.3 million that the county had been seeking to pay for local trial courts, an omission that leaves Los Angeles with a gaping deficit of $96.6 million.

Dixon said some of the shortage can be made up from new revenue sources, such as anticipated higher tobacco taxes--assuming voter approval of a November initiative--and higher property taxes from rising real estate values. But he said that making up $36.2 million of the shortfall would have to come from reducing county expenses.

Among his suggestions were:

* Delaying the planned addition of 22 Superior and Municipal Court judges at a savings of $5.6 million.

* Reducing eight seasonal firefighting positions in San Dimas, Newhall and Calabasas to save $564,211.

* Curtailing recreation services by 40% by reducing the availability of park facilities to the public on weekends and evenings, at a savings of $825,823.

* Reducing the overtime fund for sheriff’s deputies at a saving of $3,094,202.

In addition, Dixon proposed the elimination of 464 budgeted employee positions, some of which are already vacant in the county’s current hiring freeze. Layoffs of actual workers, however, are proposed in such departments as the auditor-controller’s office, Civil Service Commission and the agriculture commissioner’s office. The largest number of layoffs in a single department would be 34 temporary employees in parks and recreation.

The number of layoffs proposed is a small fraction of the county work force of about 78,000 employees. But it marks the first time in five years that the county has proposed terminating workers because of a budget squeeze, according to county officials.

The board delayed a vote on Dixon’s proposals until next week, but supervisors made it clear that they are hoping to find other ways to make up the lost revenue.

“All of these proposed budget cuts are unacceptable in terms of the level of county services we need and should have,” said Supervisor Ed Edelman, who blamed Gov. George Deukmejian and the Legislature for the county’s fund shortage.

Exempted from the latest round of proposed budget cuts are the Department of Mental Health, which was targeted earlier for $15.4 million in cuts in outpatient programs, and the Department of Health Services, which could face a $46 million cut if the tobacco tax initiative on the November ballot is not passed.