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Davis County Health Department reports budget pressures, staff reductions and awards for WIC and quality-improvement work
Summary
Finance staff reported revenue and expenditures through June were on track but the department faces a multi-year funding cliff that has prompted elimination of positions and a planned drawdown of fund balance; the meeting also recognized a national WIC breastfeeding award and a quality-improvement award.
Davis County Health Department finance staff reported to the Board of Health on Aug. 12 that revenue collections and expenditures through June were on track, but that the department is preparing for a multi-year reduction in federal and one-time grant funding that has created a projected budget gap.
"Right now, our revenue collections and our expenditures are right where they need to be," finance presenter Liz said, summarizing the June snapshot. Department leadership later explained the department began the year facing roughly a $1.5 million deficit attributable to expiring federal grants and rising costs. To manage the gap the department has eliminated roughly 20 authorized positions overall and, to date, three current employees have been laid off; most reductions were managed by holding vacancies and internal reorganizing, staff said.
Leadership said the department will move to a planned spend-down of fund balance over the next two years while it retools programs to align with available recurring revenue. Staff named two major funding sources that will decline: ARPA or similar one-time funds that had supported WIC-related activities and a public-health infrastructure grant that had funded several positions. The department said eliminating those funds will require program adjustments and that the proposed pool-permit fee increases will partially offset program costs.
Separately, the board heard recognitions for staff work: the WIC program won a national "Breastfeeding of Excellence" award from USDA Food and Nutrition Service for a peer-counseling model; staff singled out Debbie Spee (peer counselor) and Michelle Bell (breastfeeding coordinator) for their roles. The department also received a promising-practices quality-improvement award from the National Association of County and City Health Officials for a gamified internal QI effort called "Quick Quality." Staff described the QI effort as a low-cost, repeatable practice that will be shared on the national promising-practices platform.
Board members acknowledged the department's work to preserve core services while preparing for funding reductions and said they would continue to work with staff on budget strategy.
