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Proposed 2019-2020 Stanislaus County Budget Released
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The Stanislaus County Chief Executive Office has released the County’s 2019-2020 Recommended Proposed Budget for budget period 2018-2019/2019-2020 – Year 2. The Recommended Proposed Budget will serve as an interim spending plan for Stanislaus County operations until a Final Budget is adopted in mid-September.

The Proposed Budget uses as its base the 2019-2020 Spending Plan developed over one year ago, along with the 2018-2019 Adopted Final Budget. Building upon this base, the Proposed Budget establishes the starting point for year two of Budget Period 2018-2019/2019-2020 while serving as a continuum of year one objectives, providing departments a two-year time frame in which to accomplish goals and affect positive change. The focus on developing, monitoring and achieving carefully considered objectives is the cornerstone in the County’s two-year budget design. With an eye directed toward outcomes, departments have been encouraged to ask the question, “Is anyone better off?” The response to that question will be shared in the upcoming Annual Report aligned with the Final Budget report in September, which will guide decisions on how best to allocate valuable County resources to provide quality services to the community efficiently and effectively.

As a balanced operational plan, the County budget is developed using the six Board Priorities: Supporting Strong and Safe Neighborhoods, Supporting Community Health, Developing a Healthy Economy, Promoting First-Rate Learning, Delivering Efficient Public Services and Delivering Community Infrastructure.

The Recommended Proposed Budget totals $1.38 billion, an increase of $32 million, or 2.4 percent above the base budget identified in the 2019-2020 Spending Plan. Approximately $25.2 million is dedicated to department service level increases and right-sizing of program needs to external funding, primarily in departments focused on the work of Supporting Community Health. Nearly $6.8 million in increases to General Fund departments provide service level increases and staffing adjustments, mostly in departments that align with Supporting Strong and Safe Neighborhoods.

Budget Year 2019-2020 is balanced with $1.33 billion in estimated revenue and the use of $52.4 million in fund balance/retained earnings, a $16.2 million reduction in the dependence on County reserves when compared to last year’s reliance on one-time savings.

The General Fund totals $361.8 million in the 2019-2020 Recommended Proposed Budget, representing an increase of $5.2 million or 1.5 percent over the total from the Final Budget of the previous year. Discretionary Revenue assumes 4 percent growth in property tax revenue, and 2 percent growth in sales tax revenue. The General Fund is balanced with the use of $8.7 million in fund balance for a total Net County Cost of $239.9 million.

The two-year budget process is new to the County. According to Jody Hayes, Chief Executive Officer, “We will continue to move forward with purpose, building upon the strong foundational plan we have laid, and make time to reflect on what works well, identifying areas that could use a little fine-tuning.”

This budget is highly indicative of the collaborative efforts of every department within the County organization towards learning, continuous improvement and creative solutions.

A Public Hearing before the Board of Supervisors for the consideration and adoption of the 2019-2020 Recommended Proposed Budget for Budget Period 2018-2019/2019-2020 – Year 2 has been scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 18, 2019. The meeting will take place in the basement Board Chambers located at 1010 10th St., in Modesto.

The Stanislaus County 2019-2020 Recommended Proposed Budget is available for public review. It may be viewed at the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors Office located at 1010 10th St., Suite 6500, in Modesto. It is also available on the County’s website at www.stancounty.com/budget/.