Sharp Cuts Anticipated in County’s 1993 Budget : Economy: While dealing with the expected state funding loss, supervisors also must decide on a new dump, and address water and traffic concerns.

Following one of the toughest budget years in Ventura County history, county officials are gearing up for another round of sharp cuts in 1993.

Starting this week the supervisors will begin discussing proposals to cut positions, slash Fire Department services and switch the county to a four-day work week--all in an effort to offset a dramatic loss in state funding.

“The budget is going to be a real bear,” said Supervisor Vicky Howard. “We are looking at everything that we can think of as far as trying to economize and downsize.”

But while the supervisors grapple with big decisions on how to cope with the money crunch, they are also expected to deal with other challenges this year.

The board members say they will:

* Decide whether the county should build a dump at Weldon Canyon, a dilemma officials hoped to solve last year before delays in approval of an environmental impact report.

* Come up with a regional plan to deal with such issues as water resources and traffic.

* Implement tougher policies to promote more women and minorities.

The county’s bleak financial status, however, is expected to dominate much of the supervisors’ business.

Last week, Gov. Pete Wilson released a budget proposal that called for eliminating $2.6 billion in funding to cities, counties and special districts. The reduction could mean a loss of between $17 million and $32 million for the county, depending on final action taken by the Legislature, county officials said.

“The situation looks dire,” said county Chief Administrative Officer Richard Wittenberg.

On Tuesday, the board members will hold a study session to determine how to offset a loss of between $500,000 and $800,000 in state funding for the Fire Department.

According to a report prepared by the department, officials are looking into closing the Ventura Avenue fire station, the Saticoy station, the station near Malibu and the station in Las Posas Estates near Camarillo.

The report also outlines plans to consolidate stations in Oak View and Meiners Oaks and Santa Paula and Fillmore.

Fire Department officials, meanwhile, have delayed giving promotions to all employees until officials work out the financial problems.

The board will also consider a proposal to close down some county departments during slow times and give employees time off without pay. The supervisors will also discuss the possibility of moving the county to a four-day work week.

“We need to re-examine the way we do business,” Howard said. “We need to look at any way we can cut down the size of government. We will clearly be looking at everything.”

On Jan. 19, the supervisors are expected to act on a recommendation to close the Ventura Avenue library and reduce the hours of four other county libraries in an effort to save about $300,000.

Although the suggestion to close down the avenue library has come under fire from library advocates, the government leaders say they may not have a choice.

“I suspect that we are at a point where the county may not be able to offer the services that we have been offering,” said Supervisor Maggie Kildee. “I hope we can approach the budget in a creative manner.”

The county--which runs state health, welfare and court programs--receives about half of its money from the state, which is projecting a budget deficit ranging from $7.5 billion to $9.3 billion over the next 19 months.

In 1992, the county was forced to eliminate 200 positions and slash funding for dozens of county programs to offset a $10-million loss in state revenue.

“One thing we have learned by following state financial projections over the past two years--they usually get worse,” Wittenberg wrote in a budget report which will be reviewed by the board on Tuesday.

In an effort to find creative solutions, supervisors said they are considering contracting with more private companies for services. So far, the county has entered into agreements with several private doctors to run the medical clinics--a partnership that officials estimate has saved the county thousands of dollars.

Overall, the board is expected to continue a long-standing policy of protecting law enforcement organizations from the deepest reductions. Last year, the Sheriff’s Department, the district attorney’s office and other county law enforcement departments suffered 5% budget reductions. Other departments, such as personnel, were cut by 14%.

But no area of county government will be immune from the cutbacks, officials say.

“We need to take a critical look at the way we are using our revenues,” Supervisor John K. Flynn said. “Are we dividing the money up in the most positive way for Ventura County? We need to roll up our sleeves and work on it.”

Meanwhile, this year’s most volatile controversy will probably surround the proposal by Waste Management to build a landfill at Weldon Canyon in the hills between Ojai and Ventura, supervisors say.

The board members had hoped to decide by last May whether the landfill should proceed, but delays in completion of an environmental impact report slowed the process. The report is due to be released by the end of the month.

The dispute is expected to center not only on whether Weldon Canyon is suited to replace Bailard Landfill in Oxnard as the west county’s primary dump, but on whether Waste Management should own and operate it.

In July, a Santa Clara County grand jury charged Waste Management of California with grand theft for allegedly cheating a rival landfill operator and the city of San Jose out of at least $850,000 over six years.

But in August, the supervisors rejected a “bad-boy” ordinance that could have barred Waste Management from county business in the wake of the company’s legal woes. Then the supervisors set a tight schedule to consider the Weldon Canyon proposal by this spring.

Flynn anticipates at least a 3-2 vote in favor of the dump. He counts himself and Howard as affirmative votes, with Kildee providing the decisive third vote.

Howard said she favors allowing Waste Management to operate a dump at Weldon Canyon because of the company’s spotless record as operator of the Simi Valley Landfill, which serves the east county.

“I’ve lived in a city where they have operated a landfill for 10 years,” Howard said. “So far I have not seen any fatal flaws.”

Supervisor Maria VanderKolk, however, said she does not want the county to do business with Waste Management because of its alleged misconduct. She said she also does not like the idea of building a dump at Weldon Canyon.

“I have never been favorable about Weldon Canyon and I really hope we can find another alternative,” she said.

In a separate issue, several supervisors said they would like to see the county find ways to increase its public transportation system in an effort to ease traffic snarls. Howard has called on county staff to identify roads that need to be upgraded--in case federal funds become available.

President-elect Bill Clinton has said that he would push the federal government to set aside money to improve the nation’s deteriorating infrastructure.

“We need to get those projects ready should there be any opportunity for funding at the federal level,” Howard said. “That is one of the quickest ways we can get money.”

Flynn said he would like to see the county bring the cities together to find a solution to the area’s water problems.

He has formed a countywide committee of water leaders to study whether a regional desalination plant could solve long-term water problems for agencies and cities throughout the county. Flynn said he hopes that by the end of the year the committee can agree on a plan to carry the region into the next century.

“We must identify every source of water for potential development,” Flynn said. “We need to work with all the water districts and discuss the future of state water and desalination.”

Despite the budget cutbacks, the county must also find ways to promote more women and minorities, officials said.

According to a report released last fall, only six of the county’s top 38 managers are women. The top administrators include only one Latino and one American Indian. The rest are white.

The county’s middle management includes 89 men and 25 women. There are only four Latinos, three blacks and seven Asians, according to the county report.

“The work force is fairly well integrated at the bottom,” Flynn said. “But the upper areas lack integration. There simply are not many women and minorities. That is a terrible flaw.

“I think the board needs to be more firm in its policy of maintaining fair hiring practices.”