County Faced With a Swarm of Budget Pleas

It’s Day 4 of the county budget hearings.

And just when you think you’ve heard every appeal from a parade of bureaucrats seeking bigger slices of the budget, a soft-spoken man in a conservative blue suit invokes a horrifying specter: killer bees.

They’re coming.

And for the small, additional budget allocation of just $267,000 to pay for seven workers and a new pickup truck, Agricultural Commissioner Leon Spaugy told the Board of Supervisors, he will make sure the county is well prepared for the invasion.

The mean-spirited insects have already been spotted in Yuma, Ariz.--just “one mile from the California border,” Spaugy reported. And given their historical migration pace of 100 to 300 miles a year, the Africanized honey bees could be on the outskirts of Pomona by next year.

Spaugy said the funds are necessary to continue a public education campaign aimed at limiting attacks by the aggressive hybrid bees and coordinating county personnel who will have to deal with bee swarms or their victims.

Though his report conjured up images from low-budget horror films, the supervisors took it all in stride. And, several of the supervisors said after the meeting, Spaugy will probably get the additional funds.

His plea was just one of hundreds that the supervisors have heard in the annual budget hearings, which are expected to wrap up today.

Among the eclectic crowd appealing for more money Monday were AIDS activists, union officials concerned about layoffs, disabled people seeking to preserve in-home support services, community youth and gang services coordinators and school officials asking that crossing guards not be cut from the $14.7-billion annual county budget.

Already the supervisors have heard from representatives of the sheriff’s and fire departments, and of the court, public health, mental health, parks, library and myriad other agencies that provide county services.

Each of the supervisors, as he or she listens to the appeals, is compiling a list of services that deserve more money than was set aside in the proposed budget.

Supervisor Gloria Molina wants more funds for parks, libraries, children’s services and welfare. Supervisor Ed Edelman is concerned about cuts in the assessor’s office, Probation Department and mental health. Supervisor Mike Antonovich has public safety agencies, such as the sheriff’s and district attorney’s offices, at the top of his list, as well as museums, libraries and parks.

All of the pleading may be for naught.

The county budget is precariously balanced on some iffy revenue sources that will almost certainly grow even more unlikely this month.

That would mean more cuts than additions.

Many department heads are willing to take their lumps.

Spaugy, for instance, has lost several million dollars from his budget over the past several years. This year he is scheduled to lose 18 workers to budget cuts.

But, with these recent cuts, Spaugy told the supervisors Monday, “I’ve got no capacity to meet this new threat.” Thus, he made his appeal.

“This year may well be the last time we have to prepare for the invasion of these pests,” Spaugy said. “We can’t stop them from coming, but we can minimize stinging incidents.”