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Sheriff's Department is the Biggest Winner in Orange County's $6.2 Billion Proposed Budget

One of the most notable changes is a 21 percent increase in the amount of general purpose revenue the sheriff’s department will receive

Orange County
(TNS) - The cost to operate the Orange County, Calif., Sheriff’s Department is eating up an increasingly large portion of the county’s discretionary budget, meaning that when the county decides how to spend an extra dollar in revenue, it often commits it to law enforcement.

Orange County released its $6.2 billion proposed budget for the 2017-18 fiscal year on Tuesday, May 9, revealing planned changes in spending, revenue and priorities. If approved, the budget takes effect July 1.

One of the most notable changes is a 21 percent increase in the amount of general purpose revenue the sheriff’s department will receive. General purpose revenue is money that isn’t earmarked for anything, meaning the county can decide to spend it however it wants.

This year, the county estimates it will have $797 million in general purpose funding – nearly $53 million more than last year – and more than half of the $53 million will go to the sheriff. No other department saw such a large increase. The jump in general purpose revenue was driven by a 4.2 percent increase in property tax funds.

Brian Wayt, the sheriff’s department’s head of finance, said the increase was due to a bump in salaries and benefits for deputies and department employees, adding that there were no significant changes in operations.

“We’re kind of just maintaining our status quo,” Wayt said.

In September, deputies received an 8.8 percent pay raise over three years. Deputies also received pay raises in 2015 and 2016, but those were in exchange for higher pension contributions.

It has become a trend in recent years for the sheriff’s department to receive a larger portion of the county’s discretionary dollars.

A decade ago, only 11 percent of the county’s discretionary funding went to the sheriff’s department. Since then, that portion also has nearly doubled.

And over the last four years, the sheriff received twice as much general purpose revenue, even as the department’s budget has increased by only 25 percent.

That jump means that the sheriff’s budget is expanding faster than its state, federal and internal funding sources, leaving the county to supplement the growth with other revenue.

County CEO Frank Kim said the sheriff’s department receives more discretionary funding because it doesn’t have income streams like the airport or waste management departments do. But Kim also said that public safety spending is a priority for the county.

Even so, Kim denied the sheriff’s department $16 million of the discretionary funding it sought under the proposed budget.

The sheriff’s department has asked for 12 additional positions: four deputies to patrol the county’s southeast region and eight forensic scientists to help process DNA in rapes and other crime cases, and evidence in intoxicated driving incidents.

Budget uncertainty

In a rare occurrence, the county also has an alternate version of its budget that it’s not releasing to the public – a backup plan in case the state budget sticks the county with an extra $38 million in costs.

When Gov. Jerry Brown released his proposed budget in January, it signaled that the state might make counties pay a larger share for In-Home Supportive Services, which provides aid to low-income elderly and disabled people.

Kim said the county currently administers the program for the state and receives funding as part of a package that includes money for public health, behavioral health, child welfare, foster care and CalWorks services, among other programs. He said that if the state asks the county to pay more for IHSS, the county first would shift funding away from those other state-funded programs.

“But if they’re asking us to eat $38 million, that could have spillover impacts to other general funds,” Kim said, adding that every California county is facing similar questions.

Kim would not reveal where additional cuts might be made, saying the county needed to see whether the funding reductions are passed in the state’s final budget.

Other noteworthy elements of the proposed budget include:

The proposed budget is $149 million higher than the county’s current budget, and nearly a third of that amount will go toward a court-order payment the county owes the state from a dispute over vehicle license fee revenue. Orange County will pay the state $50 million this year and $55 million next year to finish off its escalating five-year payment plan.

The proposed budget is balanced and the county expects to increase its general fund reserve balance by $11 million as of next June 2018.

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©2017 The Orange County Register (Santa Ana, Calif.)

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