L.A. County officials: Brown budget would leave them with huge burden

L.A. County officials said that under Gov. Jerry Brown's budget plan, the county would have to take on $1.4 billion in additional program responsibilities beginning this year.

They said the county — which currently operates with a $24.2-billion budget — would not have the money or program expertise to absorb certain elements of the plan so quickly.

DOCUMENTS: Read Brown's budget proposal and L.A. County's assessment

Four of the five county supervisors spoke at the hearing called by the state Assembly's Budget Committee, chaired by Bob Blumenfeld, (D-Van Nuys). All seemed to agree that the governor's plan did not appear to offer sufficient funding for the programs the county would be asked to take over.

Under the governor's so-called realignment plan, the state would transfer a wide swath of its funding responsibilities and services to county governments. For example, counties would assume increased responsibility for the funding of mental health, child welfare services and substance abuse programs.

Brown has pledged to also shift funding for the programs and hopes voters will approve $6 billion in tax and fee increases during a special election in June to help.

Read the full story here.

--Garrett Therolf

Photo: Brown addressing legislature. Credit: L.A. Times

Comments

[Bill Lopez]

"Brown .... hopes voters will approve $6 billion in tax and fee increases during a special election in June to help."

Hello??? Jerry???? 12% unemployment and you think we want to RAISE taxes - on WHAT?

[Migelito]

There should be no complaining from any tax unit, especially those from the democrat machine - California's expenditures exceed its income (government at the trough) and you elected Jerry Brown so deal with it. Cut your expenses and please, don't expect the other 49 to bail out your sorry state.

[innocent]

get rid of illegal aliens

[Paul R.]

Bummer. Maybe L.A. shouldn't have built a $500-plus million dollar school. Maybe L.A. shouldn't be a sanctuary for hundreds of thousands of people who don't speak the language, contribute very little, soak up benefits and send billions in cash out of the country. Maybe L.A. shouldn't overtax the developers that want to replace its slums with decent housing. Maybe it's just a little to late for L.A. to cry.

[James]

"Brown .... hopes voters will approve $6 billion in tax and fee increases during a special election in June to help."

Yeah, that's not gonna happen.

BUT, if California voters somehow lose all reason and approve that, or if the state legislature defies what I believe to be the will of the people and does it on their own, I can tell you right now- I am packing up my family, my 5 businesses and as many of my employees as will come and we are ALL moving to Austin. For real.

[ikagirl]

You can't collect taxes from people without jobs. And with businesses leaving Cali daily, there won't be much of a base there either. There are programs that can be scaled back still, but looks like Brown won't do it.

[ikagirl]

Here's an idea: Get rid of half of state politicians, and cut the pay of the rest. They'd find out quickly what they have put businesses and workers through. Maybe then they would cooperate on balancing the budget.

[True Freedom]

So, all of Brown's talk about slashing and cutting is really just a shifting of the burden to the counties? It's not "cutting" unless you actually CUT. This is just smoke and mirrors accouting game.. taxpayers aren't really saving anything.

NO TAX EXTENSIONS until REAL CUTS are made. Cut welfare, all entitlement programs, pension reform (long term savings), cuts to education... but make them absorb the cuts by busting union's grip on non-teaching staffing levels... and all benefits for all educational employees.

[u know]

great job electing this moron for governor idiot voters in California

[James]

How's about the failure to collect parking tickets with value
millions of dollars per year ?
How's about the support to the illegal immigrants so the
city/county is willing to pay more for non-anti illegal
immigrant vendors ?
You can not make the state to pay for your mismanagement, go to
HELL to ask for more money

[joey]

Vote to raise taxes...even Californiacratics won't pass that measure...Is Jerry smoking the good stuff again?

[dee]

Cities and counties have been counting on the state, and secondarily the fed, to fund all their 'projects'...one NorCal community (now called a 'baby Bell') of 70.000 (equal mix of white/black/Asian) put in multiple bocce courts--with redevelopment money, while ignoring a waterfront transit center. The same monies have gone for senior programs, after-school, and transit--and set up programs which may be far beyond the means of the community. City money too often funds graft.
Let's face it, it just can't go on. Let the cities hire those who (used to) work in these state offices...at 'consultant' pay...and get on with it. No one wants cuts--not seniors, parents, or construction companies---my sad loss is CalFire. Yet I think Brown is right: when an agency set up for handling wildfires ends up responding to home fires because of unbridled building in wildland areas with no fire department, then it's time to re-evaluate the agency and see if it shouldn't pull out. Someone made big money on these builds--they should pay for 'services', not cities.

[Keri Burch]

Why do you think jerry wants to get rid of prop 13 and "give back local control" to counties and cities....he wants his cake and eat it too....it's win win for him, he gets the counties/cities to raise taxes and he doesn't take the blame....how typically liberal

[August]

You mean they are going to have to release all of those DANGEROUS homeless veterans (for sleeping outside) & jaywalkers from jail .....

[Borchy]

it was a mistake to re elect brown!!! the proper thing to do it STOP spending money on union " shops " across the board. enact Arizona's SB1070 to clean out the illegals. close non esentails such as libraries, immigration offices, etc...

[dave]

more wining about how government is not taking enough of our money and wasting it on useless cars...cell phones...and other perks not offered to most workers. whey cant they do with less...i SAY ENOUGH...not another cent from me...NO MORE TAXES...CUT EXPENSES...CUT THE PERKS...CUT THE FAT PENSIONS...SEND EM HOME without their publicly paid for luxuries!!!

[stewart]

Governor Brown was relected to the position as Governor with a mandate to address the severe fiscal emergency that the former Governor was unable to address, here Brown has been offfice how many days and already here at this comment section we read the most partisan comments?
Brown ran on the platform that there would be no raised taxes unless and until it was put before the People and he is going to see to it that this issue is carried by the vote or not, I see no problem in that at all, as a matter of fact I think that is the way it ought best be.
Near every day now, we read of a new way he has determined to cut gvt spending, he promised to do that and here again he has lived up to that promise.
He is also resetting certain responsibilities that he feels should not be the states burden, but rather for local control instead, as he asserts local gvt can best deal with local questions than the state.
These and more are directly associated with the vision he has for California in the age in which we live and the circumstances he finds the state, it was not going to be easy, it was not going to be popular, and he came with eyes open, and We The People gave him that authority that he now asserts.

[Joe B]

Holy schmoly. Who's the fat slob behind Gov. Medfly?

[Scam City]

Brown is hoping this thing makes it to a special election in June when a lot of people will be on vacation. He will also tell the welefare people if his tax increase dose not pass he will have to cut their payments. then we will see a flood of commericals with poor school kids crying, a soot covered fire fighter telling people their will be no none to put out the fire. Then it will be toped off with an old lady being mugged and no heros to come and stop the criminals. He is hoping for a light turn out of voters and a big turn out of union voters. Plaine and simple is to get the word out. Vote no on the tax increases. They are not tax extensions but a tax increase. I hardly call a 5 years a simple extension. Tell your neighboor to vote no. Tell your family to vote no. Tell your workers to vote no. Vote no early and vote no often. Tell Moon Beam Jerry it is time to grow a set and make the cuts in pay and pensions to fix the problem. and if necessary shring the work force and cut the many unessary and duplicated services in California that are their to just create jobs for the unions.

[Gil]

ITS simple stop spending money on a daliy basis on bogus programs. Problem solved. The county supervisiors continue to spend money on programs that do nothing..