O.C. cuts budget by $30 million, to start

The Orange County Board of Supervisors took a key step Tuesday to deal with weakening tax revenue, slicing more than $30 million from the county’s budget and acknowledging that more cuts are on the way.

In a heated discussion that underscored the dire state of the county’s finances, supervisors said few programs will be spared and that layoffs are a strong possibility. They reached the $30-million savings in large part by postponing planned purchases and construction projects.

Supervisors also said that for the first time they will consider charging the cities of Newport Beach and Huntington Beach for harbor patrol duties performed by sheriff’s deputies, services that cost the county an estimated $6 million a year.

In addition, supervisors slashed their own budgets, agreeing to return $750,000 each -- or a combined $3.75 million -- from a discretionary account that funds community projects in the cities they represent.

With sales and property tax revenue slumping and the state yet to announce expected cutbacks, gloomy supervisors said that additional cuts will likely include employee layoffs and the closure of some county facilities.

“I don’t want anyone to misread the peril that we’re in,” Supervisor Bill Campbell said.

County Executive Officer Tom Mauk has asked the head of every county department to tell him how they could save an additional 5% from their budgets, on top of the cuts approved Tuesday. The additional cuts will be imposed only if revenue continues to decline, as expected.

“Things are going to get worse, they’re not going to get better. There’s not suddenly going to be a money tree,” Campbell said.

“I’m extremely nervous about the future.”

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stuart.pfeifer@latimes.com