During last week’s budget hearings, the Board of Supervisors set priorities for the coming 2007-08 fiscal year. Final approval will come at our June 26 meeting.

The total budget proposed is $5.9 billion. This is a 5.7% increase over last year, due to a 3.25% inflation rate, a 1% increase in county population and additional pension outlays. After a decade of accelerating assessments, OC home property values are stabilizing, so County government must respond with caution.

Only 7 cents of your property tax dollar actually funds County government (schools get 62 cents) but that still makes up 68% of our discretionary revenues. The flattening and possible decline of property values will have an impact on future operations.

Major budget expenditures include:

Community Services 28%:  These include public health, child support services, foster care programs, child protection and CalWorks (welfare-to-work). These are state-mandated programs whose funding depends largely on the state legislature.

Infrastructure 23%: This includes roads (in unincorporated areas), countywide flood control (350 miles of channels) and the library system (32 branches) Most of the funding comes from dedicated property taxes. Also included are Orange County Airport and the County Landfills, which are self funded with their own revenues.

Public Protection 20%: This includes the Sheriff’s Dept., jails, District Attorney, Probation and the Courts. Much of the Sheriff’s operations are covered by payments from the 12 cities that contract with the County for law enforcement services. Another key revenue source is the half-cent sales tax (Prop. 172) which has been running above expectations. The County’s general fund covers the rest.

Debt Service 8%: This includes bankruptcy, Mello Roos, and pension bond debt.

The remaining expenditures include capital improvements, general government, insurance, and reserves.

Specific items generating lively Board discussion included a 5-0 Board vote to restore $1.3 million for 16 positions in the Drug Court, a popular program to divert drug abusers from jail. We also added 3 positions to Animal Control to put teeth in the County’s new controls on chronically barking dogs. I was the lone dissenter on a $150,000 grant to the OC Tourism Council. I believe the promoting and advertising for a private industry is the responsibility of that industry, not of the taxpayers.

Up for ratification at our June 26 meeting are the Sheriff’s Department agreements to provide protection for the 12 OC cities that contract with the County. Costs are based on the service levels requested by each city, which can vary widely. Low per capita costs like Laguna Woods reflect that city’s status as a gated community. High traffic cities like Stanton need more enforcement. Low crime cities like Villa Park may choose high protection levels based on ability to pay. All costs are directly reimbursed to the County by each city.

These costs for contracted service are significantly lower than most cities that operate their own police departments. Direct comparisons can be tricky, however. Most contract cities have lower crime rates to begin with, and many cities with their own police departments enjoy greater day-to-day operational control. A more direct comparison could be made with Yorba Linda, which contracts police services with Brea.

Still, cash-strapped cities should always be aware of the option of contracting out services with the County, whether it’s with the Sheriff’s Department, Animal Control or the OC Library system.

Contract Cities (w/OC Sheriff):

Each year, the Board of Supervisors allocates millions in federal and state money to fight various social pathologies, unhealthy lifestyles and other bad habits, mostly among our young people. These funds are earmarked toward certain programs, and if we do not spend them, they will go to other counties. “Use ‘em or lose ‘em” is the prevailing attitude toward these funds.

At the same time, it is difficult to know what effect any of these programs are having on actual behavior. We allocated $200,000 for a countywide anti-drug and alcohol poster contest, for example. How do we judge its effects? After over 20 years, there is still no evidence that the D.A.R.E. program has had any effect of youth drug use.

Last week alone, the Board allocated $7.3 million to various non-profit community groups and schools for 15 different programs aimed at alcohol, tobacco and drug abuse. Yet, good intentions do not prove results. My office will be devoting more attention as to whether these programs can demonstrate real results.